I’m walking down a silent path,
glancing quickly at the lives I pass
but as I slow, I begin to learn
that truths are buried deep behind masks.

The first girl I pass is in tears
grasping scissors in her hand
blood flowing rivers down her arms
While there’s no way for me to understand.

Her parents have so many expectations
Most are far beyond her reach.
She feels completely unworthy of anything good.
Now she can’t walk along the beach.

I want to scream “Life has so much more planned for you!
If problems break you to the bone,
grow back stronger than before!
Know that you don’t stand alone!”

He’s never been respected a day in his life
simply for the fact that he’s overweight.
Trying to eat through his pains.
Tonight, his life is up to fate.

He eats lunch in the bathroom stall.
The only way to escape beatings is to hide
He can’t find safety at home or school.
Tonight, he’ll try to escape through suicide.

I want to tell him, “Life has so much more panned for you!
If problems break you to the bone,
grow back stronger than before!
Know that you don’t stand alone!”

The third is early 16 years old.
He pressured her to have sex in his car.
Now she’s pregnant,
while he berates her from afar.

Her mother cries in disappointment.
Her father can’t look her in the eye.
Forced to live with her remaining friend
Tonight, she decides does the baby life, or die?

Why has everyone abandoned them?
Not just these three, but the countless others out there!
I want everyone to see as I have,
and then try not to care.

Once you know what’s there, it’s impossible to ignore.
No one’s heart is made of stone.
I have my task until I die:
To stand with all these people, so that no one stands alone.