Truth, Fire, and Life

No one ever tells you
That love doesn't mean forever
That life can fade
Scratch and distort
That vows so easily bend

No one ever tells you
That love comes in different forms
That first and true
Soft and vibrant
Are so easily mistaken

No one ever tells you
That falling isn't simple
Sort of like living
Laughing and crying
What's easier isn't always best

No one ever tells you
This sort of thing doesn't come with instructions
It's the feeling in the pit of your stomach
And you know, just to yourself, when
Exactly, the precise moment that it ends
Or if it ever even started
Or if it ever even mattered

No one ever tells you
But they all know better than you
They all know that you "could have made it work"
That you "can apologize and start over"
That you're making the biggest mistake of your life
Of his life
Of your daughter's life

No one ever tells you
And no one ever stops to consider
That living day by day
Miserable, and wishing it would end
Eventually it will end
The question is whether or not you will
At last take it into your own hands

No one ever tells you
It's like the choice to strike a match
You can't make amends and ask the wick kindly
To regenerate and start anew
That it was too soon and you weren't ready for the fire
Last or first, burnt out and broken

No one ever tells you
That it's going to hurt either way
That it's going to burn and bleed and bellow
That it's going to eventually, somehow
End
And that you're going to be glad when it does