I chose my path, I walked my line;
everything I did is mine.
I stand and claim the good and bad,
the happy times and times when sad.
The acts for which I feel quite proud,
times when my voice was far too loud.
Those days when I did not stand strong
in places I did not belong.
Each act of mine, each word I spoke
in bitterness or as a joke
impacted on the world around
like birdsong or a raucous sound.
For I am them and they are me,
this little man those things set free
and though, at times, I still will break
the rules that in my mind I make,
I know that I will try to strive
for acts that make me feel alive.
So though I still accept my wrongs
they won’t cover me; mute my songs.
Instead they give me extra power
to stand tall in my final hour.