In my own time zone I brew myself a cup of coffee
No rush to chase the clock no need to second-guess what others expect
They call loneliness a disease but I just smile and lay out the chessboard
Turns out I’m not afraid of the black pieces—I’m afraid of the empty space after the move
Wind drifts through the window like transparent water flooding in
Drowning the unspoken words and the sealed letters unopened
Guess that’s what growth is—the scar left by a wound
A little brighter than moonlight a little thicker than yesterday
I walk slow through my very own forest
Those who get lost stay stuck at their lost crossroads
You said not all fish swim in the same sea
So here’s to us—each chasing our own tide
Freedom to me is doing what I love
In the time I love the way I love
Even if I wake to a desert after a clumsy dream
One tiny joy’s enough to grow an oasis
Later I became that quiet adult—no more wearing my heart on my sleeve
Folding my longing into the creases of my shirt
When I saw you happy I kind of hit pause for a sec
Turns out happiness can shine right through someone else’s eyes
Time’s a lost clock spinning round in the same place
I thought people age slow but in one blink—my hair tips turned white
They say understanding’s just a pile of misunderstandings
Like the sea’s reflection—can’t tell rain apart from a sorrowful face
I walk slow along the shore of old memories
Those I missed carry the tenderness we left behind
If we fall in love let’s hold hands till the alley ends
If we drift apart let’s keep each other safe from storms and rain
Courage is—even after being searched hurt and let down
Still daring to lay my heart out to the morning sun
After all the scar on my chest remembers how that pain felt
They say no perfect essay exists—just like no perfect despair does
Like the cash in my pocket can’t grow mushroom umbrellas on its own
I fold my unsaid words into a paper boat letting it drift out to sea
Hope you won’t change your name next life—so I can find you easier
Later I learned to stop feeling sorry for myself
Only cowards hide in self-pity too scared to move ahead
The world keeps changing the scenery shifts again and again
But those who’re supposed to meet will meet again—at the forest’s end
