You were afraid to tell them.
So scared, your legs trembled, knocking together like a newborn fawn.
That you loved the music he created with and for you, his smile bright as the sun,
Skin hot to the touch, beauty and charm blinding to look at.
You had hopes, that he could cast his golden rays into the dark abyss,
The one you had hidden yourself in so deep, even you couldn’t find yourself.
You wanted to believe, so you clung to the roots jutting out from the rock,
Dragged yourself, scraped and scratched every inch of your outstretched hands  .
His love and his light surrounding you, you were empowered enough to reach the top.

They stood at the edge, figures a mottled grey with questioning eyes.
You reached out your hand, the words of your heart pouring over your lips like honey.
Remembering sweet sounds made by calloused hands, you bared your soul.
And yet...they only scowled, turning as black as the abyss, eyes rotting yellow,
They stomped on your hand, words like black tar, melting onto your white feathered wings.
They shoved you backwards, back towards the blackness, your body cracked against the stone.
Every bone in your body shattered, red crimson filling your lungs, you drifted.
Lost in the ice-cold sea, nothing left to hold you up, you sunk deeper and deeper…

“Hey you, open your eyes. We’re not done yet.”

Listen to my words, let the sound fill you with something other than emptiness.
Let it lift you up and drag you out of that forsaken sea,
Let it force air back into your lungs which you had forgotten to breathe.
Let it start your heart and pump the blood back through your veins.

This is what I hadn’t the courage to say.

Do not think of this as the end.
They were your oppressors, the shackles that held you down.
You wanted their approval but you didn’t need it,

“You were not born to please them.”

If they can’t see the light in your eyes when he sings,
Feel the fluttering of your heart as he embraces you,
Know of the love and acceptance he gave you, like you were the only man in the world,
Then they didn’t deserve someone as radiant as you.

So drag yourself out of that abyss, shake away the tar as if it were water,
Mend the bones in your body, and-for God’s sake-climb those rocks and roots,
As if your life depended on it, and remember this;
Spread those beautiful tar-stained wings and rise.
Rise like the sun in the East, refuse to stop shining even after it sets.
Rise like a phoenix from the ashes, never let anyone tear you down.
Rise like a tidal wave from the sea, crash into the shore with all your might.
Rise like a leaf swept into the air, twirling and never knowing where you’ll land.
Rise god damn you, rise like the skyline of a city on the horizon, a sign of new beginnings.

“You were not born to please anyone but yourself.”

So point your head towards the sky, and feel the wind caress you like your lover once did,
Feel the sun bask you in its hot kisses, lose yourself in that vast sea of blue…
...and RISE.