How do we know if we've grown up?

Do we have to count our gray hairs? Or see if there's any hair left at all?

Is it when life takes us to a temporary stop

Where it lets us decide if we want to go back or prefer to fall?

I know that I have lived long enough

To know that everyone's different,

To fix, and build myself up,

To appreciate noise as much as I starve for silence.

I have lived long enough

To not judge others the way they were 

To know when and how to act tough,

To let go of my doubts, to try and test the waters.

But then, maybe I just think I'm old enough

To push myself too hard

So when life gets rough

I can say I've played all my cards.

You'd think I'm being naive

But the truth is, no one's ever old enough

Nor we are ever too young to believe

That indeed, life could get all messed up.

Maybe we're all supposed to reach that certain plight

Where they'd draw the fancy curtains to end the show

For us to see what lies beneath the props and the lights

Where they'd rob us clean of everything we thought we know.

And then unfamiliarity takes over

Making us wish we could undo our existence

But I guess we can't just run away forever

Or sit and wait to see what happens next.

So we decide to take a stand --

For what we believe in, for what we want the world to understand

And convince ourselves that the future lies in our hands

While we're chasing down every bit of hope through their tiny strands.

Then we try to make a difference

In our subtle, little ways

So if we ever find our way to the brink of negligence,

We'll know where to come home to at the end of the day.

Only then can we finally say that we've grown up,

No matter how long or short we've lived,

As long as we begin to see clear of what's right ahead of us

Even if we're far away from any sense of reprieve.

But until then, no one is ever old enough

After all, age is but a measure of existence

We can stay young and carefree for as long as we'd like

Or we can choose to grow up -- grow up and make a difference.

Thank you for reading!

❤❤❤