A Thousand Roses

If I had a thousand roses
I'd give them all to you.
Think not that they're for love
but for the trials you put me through.

There's one for every lie you told,
one for each time you yelled.
There's one for each time you said you weren't mad,
one for each "secret" that I couldn't tell.

There's one for every night you didn't come home,
and I secretly hoped you would.
There's one for every time you put them first.
I'd lash out at you if I could.

I love my sisters more than life,
but you already had a family.
Maybe things weren't perfect between you and mom,
but why did you leave me?

If I had a thousand roses
I'd give them all to you.
For I have died a thousand deaths
from all you've put me through.

(c) Mary Barren