when i was a child
i stared at the sun
it rolled around my eyes
a warm coin in my palm
i think i wanted to see
what all the fuss was about

now my irises are circled
by a ring of brown
scorched california hill color
pushing out pacific blue
and it seems to me
that my eyes are half burned

now i'm living in fear
what ghosts are still chasing
and which one's am i angering
in headlong flight from
every test failed and lesson unlearned

most of my days are spent
facing back, bent over
chasing words of comfort
for a boy who felt
like inviting the sun in to talk