"Farewell" I whispered under my breath as I stood under the stairwell/ Wondering where hell could differ from life, never a fairy tale/ Read the writing on the wall, but the words were spelled incorrectly/ Wanted to make it right, but yet subconscious wouldn't let me/ Ready to decorate those same walls with the insides of my skull/ Steady-handed, hyped depression made the palette fade to dull/ And ultimately, I felt like this planet was out to get me/ A muted gun blast was the exit sign, with no questions left to ask/ But I've got questions left to ask, and I've got things I've never done/ So many people I've never met, and I've got races left to run/ And just this once I won't be a coward, I'll play the role of the selfless/ Live this day-by-day existence, even though at time's it's hellish/ Maybe I'll write a book on future philosophy to make Socrates jealous/ I'll move to the middle of the desert and train an entire legion of zealots/ I'll decorate the skyline with a felt tip, fellowship with world leaders/ Organize a campaign to give the poorest children the best teachers Or maybe i'll just live, breathe in and out and in again/ Until the end comes, search for the truth and then some/ Win some, lose more, but still the fight continues/ Carry on, young man, carry on/ Carry the cross across time, over the line and stand strong/ Carry on, young man, carry on/ Look that depression in the eye, because it can't last long/ Carry on, young man, carry on "Farewell" I call to friends and family, cry and wave goodbye/ Enlisted courage by my side because I'm not afraid to die/ I'll pray and try to keep my hand from shaking, bite my bottom lip/ Fight the good fight for my children's right to exist/ It's come to this: peace keeping conflict/ Who's being honest/ Why can't we learn from history and try to move beyond this/ Stationed in Vietnam, ten-digit number becomes my name/ Smoke your marijuana to try and ease the pain/ Estray my mind on acid paths to try and get away/ My best friend "casualty" stepped on a landmine yesterday/ And let's just say I'm less than thrilled to swallow this jagged little pill/ I just want to go home to my dead-end nine-to-five and pay the bills Will I be half the man I was before? Will they ever understand/ A mission and contraband, blurred lines drawn to right and wrong/ Bottom line, I made it through so I know you can/ Carry on, young man, carry on/ Flashback to victories won when you hear that certain song/ Carry on, young man, carry on/ We got you to thank for the free earth we stand upon/ Carry on, young man, carry on