She drove ninety-five down the interstate
with tears running down all the way.
She passed the Georgia state sign right on by,
and sped past those beloved places
that had shaped her life for so long.

She no longer wanted her past and her parents
to dictate who she would become,
and she needed to leave the pain behind.

She knew she would never see eye to eye with her Pa,
especially after that bog fight they’d had last night
after she missed curfew. Again.
She couldn’t bear to once again disappoint her Ma,
but she just needed affirmation of her love.

Jake was the only person who had ever
told her that he cared about her.
But when she told him about the baby,
he left, never to return to that small town.
Her parents always told her that boy was trouble,
but he was the only one who understood her.

She was a wild child and needed to be free,
free from the anger and disappointment.
She knew that change was the key,
the key to a better future.

She needed to relieve the shame she was cast,
and escape the rejection that always followed.
So now she was leaving her life in that small town, hoping
the memories become faded and just part of her past.