I need to get my head 

on straight, you know,

a wise man said that

two inevitable parts of life

are work and pain

so stop resisting these

and accept it.

I need to get my head 

on straight

because I keep expecting

life to be

all roses without the thorns.

I lament the thorns

so much

that I forget to breathe deep

and smell the sweet soothing scent of all those beautiful roses--

pink and yellow and red and everything in between--

am I too lost in sorrows to see them?

I need to open my eyes and see again,

I need to open my lungs and breathe again,

then my head will be on straight as a proud tree

reaching to the sun.