Society’s noose fed the rope around my neck
Teaching me to hate the things I used to love about myself
Whispering that maybe I deserve to be strung up and forgotten

Binding and suffocating, warping and wrapping
Lashed to a pedestal of hatred and stagnation
I yearn to be free from these ropes that bind me

My rope necklace tightens
Mangles my already tangled mind with its words,
And suddenly my feet leave the ground

I’ve never had the weight lift off my shoulders so fast
Nor have I ever heard the sweet calls of birdsong above my stooped head
For the first time, I feel the summer breeze upon my face

In the ever lengthening cycle I fall
Still held in place but this time away from the cool wind
Back where I only taste bitter disappointment in my mouth instead of freedom

I long to place my rubber worn soles against the ground
To break my bindings and run again
Somewhere where I can’t feel rope burns across my neck
     — Somewhere Where I am Free