I like to believe that in my past life I was a tree. I've got too many thoughts and opinions to not be living and I love fresh air too much not to breathe. It would explain why even in large groups I find myself stagnant wanting nothing other than to take it all in. It would explain why I feel with every fiber of my being this yearning to take care of and support those around me, even if by simply sharing the air in my body. As I stand tall around all of those around me, I can sometimes forget to look down every once in a while and maybe that's why I don't see it when people begin to climb all over me and maybe that's why I don't see it when people began to peel back my layers for their own pleasure. Maybe that’s why I didn’t realize that his gentle caress was actually the deep, carving of his name on my skin that I would never be able to get rid of, maybe that's why I didn't see it coming, when he began to cut me down. I guess my head was too busy peering over everyone, looking at the sky above. I guess that giving everything I have to someone doesn't always mean I will receive love. I guess that no matter how wide my arms branch out some people will still only see me as a temporary place to land and no matter how hard the rain falls I am expected to still stand. At least in that life when I was expected to stand tall all day it was feasible, the pressure I feel now is simply unbearable, my roots used to hold me strong and uptight but now I can't even manage to sleep at night. So I'm not sure where I stand with reincarnation or if this thought conflicts with my religion, but I hope that one day I will cross paths with a tree that seems to hopefully reach a little too far toward the sky and I'll find again, the courage to do the same.