Just as that moment of bliss 

Found first thing in the morning -

Before reality breaks over the mind -

Soothes closed eyes and

Barely stirring spirits,

So childhood comforts

Bones that know not what

Their day will bring

 

Childhood seems to be such

A small moment,

And yet,

It is all I have known

 

Behind me lies shelter and

A constant security,

While, ahead of me,

Ignorant dreams run

Blindly along a path of youth

In leaps of anticipation 

And faith

 

As this childhood

Wastes away and decays 

From my life with

That same speed and

That same hesitance that

It first possessed when it 

Was planted,

I seem to discover the flavor

Is far more sweet than bitter

 

But somehow, as I burn through

Layers of life in search

For a new tomorrow,

I forget that 

I am burning through

More than just days;

And as I am beginning to

Chase future worlds,

Perhaps I need to remember that

Chasing can sometimes 

Look a whole lot like

Running away

 

For me, the future

Remains foreign,

Though not unkind,

But how is it for you

Who first imagined 

This childhood before

It ever began

 

How is it for you

Who dreamed of

Red hair and freckles

Before these blue eyes ever

Blinked away the tears of day

 

And how is it for you

Who have helped to build 

The world I now 

Fight to keep 

From your reach,

Hidden among laughter,

Doors, and teenage behaviors

 

For you

Who have prayed relentlessly

For peace in the path yet

To be paved by this 

Delicately headstrong attitude 

Of mine that still

Hasn't learned when to stop

Its tongue from setting

Opinions ablaze

 

How does my future 

Feel to you

 

Selfishly I have danced

Through your home

Without ever considering the

Sacrifices made to create

The very music I dance to

 

And now, having stopped,

I find only the power

To offer up a meager

'Thank you'

For all you have done -

Both known and unknown -

To paint the structure 

Along which I have grown

And for all the times 

You will

Push me to grow,

Even when all other words

Will tempt me to settle

 

Just as that moment of bliss

Found first thing in the morning -

Before reality breaks over the mind -

Soothes closed eyes and 

Barely stirring spirits,

So this childhood so graciously

Given to me comforts

These bones that still know not

What their day will bring

 

And for this, I thank you