You Only Write Once

If I had only one chance to write,

To show the world what I’ve got,

I would not waste it.

I would write about the good things in life

The simple things

Like the rain on a warm spring morning

Pitter-pattering on the sidewalk.

Or the kindness of strangers who have everything to lose,

Yet they show kindness anyway.

If I had only one chance to write,

I could describe life’s hazards.

The bad experiences—death, loss, anger.

The injustice of innocent lives being thrown away,

Cast out into the wind and never coming back.

But the world is full of such hazards.

They are talked about all day, everyday,

Until the bad things fill our heads and block out the good experiences in life.

The melancholy voices threaten to overtake us

To break us

To mold us

But if I had one chance to write,

Only one chance,

I would not focus on the horrid or sad parts—

Although they are important,

And they have their place—

I would choose instead to lift up the joyfulness of the world

Because that’s what this place needs.

The earth needs happiness in order to keep going.

It needs hope;

Craves it, even.

And if I had only one chance to write,

To show the world what I’ve got,

I would show the world hope.