I can shed a thousand tears and it will mean nothing
Sit and be afraid and weary
Talk it out yell and scream
The anger and bitterness consuming me
So that I make demands and act tough
I can use force and deal blows to wound
With word or hand, crippling

Or… I can be syrup sweet and super nice
Bending like a reed in strong wind
Acquiescing to the point of pain
Dying inside but hoping, praying it’s worth it
And nothing will come of it
Because I cannot do it alone

We make promises every day and break them quick as lightning
Hurting one another trying to find some semblance of identity
To make right a fucked-up life
Made so by fear and pain

I could retreat into self
Offering no me to make we
Only giving a series of motions without emotions
To pacify your questioning mind
And lying to your fragile heart
Giving you no substance that qualifies as real

Or I could chose to take the blessing given and cherish it
Shaping it with hands sweat and tears
Turning something broken into art
And perfection
But I cannot do it alone

I can choose the way to be one with you
The right way or the wrong
I find it better to take time to know you - the other side of me
And to understand who you are deep inside
Offering my heart my love and my soul no matter what I find
While accepting the same from you
If you freely truly give

No falsehoods and secrets
No pacifiers
Simply practicing two things that seem to matter most
The give and the take
Those twins we find hard to see
But even harder to emulate