Your first sense of self-worth lights upon you
Only at their caprice.
You starve by their greed,
Ail by their cackling malice,
Despair by their abuse of your heart.

Yet…from them as well
Come the embrace of a home,
The light of life’s lessons,
And the dashing chariot of camaraderie.

And perhaps from one will emanate
A warmth to requite your own
In the midst of winds and snow–
A tenderness to redeem
The bitter betrayals from passionate hearts
Who proved so cruelly untrue.

And while none sustain perfection in their souls,
You have those few:
Who tend to your ills;
Who arc your joy across the sky;
Who welcome you to the pageant.

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