EXILE

Life’s turns are strange.
I had to leave in disgrace.
And traveled many miles
And settled in a distant place.

As time passed
And my spirit came to rest
I began to reach out
And appreciate my home farther West.

I made new friends
Even though I lived alone
And learned to turn within,
To develop strengths of my own.

And, as my radio plays each day
The station I receive most clear
Is one many miles away.
The station at my old home.

As I sit atop this mountain and listen
I hear names and voices that I once knew.
Though they’ve forgotten that I exist
My memories of them still persist.

That place of my youth
Where all that I am was formed
Will always be
My home.

Many memories are bitter
And too painful to bring to mind
But others are good
And I’d return if I could.

As I listen to the music they play
Hear the events of their lives
I retain a grain of faith
That I’ll be redeemed someday.

The road back from disaster and ruin
Is hard and rutted
And has a terrible steep grade
But these are the trials
Of which men are made.

The searing flames of the hottest kiln
Is the price we pay
For the best tempered steel.
Each day survived we step higher,
Become stronger, till we escape the fire.

As I sit alone and rebuild my pride
And examine the feelings I tried to hide
I wish them everything in life that’s good
And I’d return there if ever I could.
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