Oh weary traveler,

Who are you to hate the summer?

You, who burns in the winter

Who knows no cozy cabin to call home

 

You jump from place to place

Reveling in the attention of the residents

They give you friendship

They give you trust and affection

 

What do you give in return, traveler?

You give them laughter

You give them your shoulder

You would give them your life

 

You are a fool, traveler

To be less than who you are

To show less than how you feel

That’s why they abandon you

 

They kick you out of their homes

Sometimes you leave quietly

Sometimes you wake up and they are gone

As if they had been nothing but a dream

 

You are weak, traveler

To claim you no longer care about them

Save for the boy you loved

Save for the woman who died

 

The boy who let you in too easily

You never saw his face

You only saw the notes he’d leave behind

To create a love based on lies

 

The woman who treated you like an equal

She never told you how it felt

To succumb to the darkness within

She just wanted to protect you

 

You are naive, traveler

To think that their presence would help you

To think he’d still love you

To think she’d have your answers

 

You have no right, traveler

To mourn his friendship

To mourn her teachings

To act like nobody else could give you the same

 

You are getting lost, traveler

In the forest that you trapped yourself in

The cabins you left behind shine their lights too brightly

You cannot follow them anymore

 

The first boy who let you in is no longer home

The first girl you thought about kissing looks at you from her window

The last girl you left still calls your name

You don’t want to take your last step off the porch

 

There are no more cabins ahead

The trees get thicker as the path gets thinner

The sun is going down

You no longer want to keep walking

 

Don’t look back, traveler

The lights are dimming as your old friends go to sleep

If you change your mind at this point,

They won’t be there to save you

 

Keep walking, traveler

Maybe the path will open up ahead

The bushes brush your exposed ankles

The frosty air nips like a knife at your neck

 

Keep warm, traveler

The fire that burns in your chest

From the fear of being alone

Is why you’re still alive

 

The path leads you to a cave

Let it be your shelter for the night

Or for the rest of your life

The echoes will be your company now

Let this instance of time last forever

In which your asthma arrests you

And you can no longer breathe

Be thankful for the slivers of air that make it

 

Trust in your conviction, traveler

Let the residents of the past stay away

For they no longer need you

The countless coward who hides

 

So weep, traveler

Let the tears burn your cheeks away

For there is no one to hear you now

No one to request you be their comedic relief

 

Stay alert, traveler

The irrational fear that someone may want you

In your vulnerable state

Is a hopeful mindless venture

 

When you look out into the forest

The cabins are nowhere in sight

So stop worrying, traveler

The echoes are your friends now

 

You can leave the cave as many times as you want

You are a traveler after all

But be warned you won’t find your old path

For it does not exist anymore

 

You may still have your mind, dear traveler

But you lost your heart while trying to stay sane

The blood trail it left behind is not enough for you to find it

For it is long, long gone.