Welcome to my mind, 

The wild, carefree place where thoughts can pass

With the gentle touch of an autumn breeze or

With the horrific rush of the tornado. 

You might need a life jacket when you 

Attempt to sail my seas of emotions and

Wrangle with the giant Kraken of my daily affections 

And sensitivities different from the day before

The clashing sounds of creativity and logic like two songs with opposing melodies 

Constantly meshing in my head might push you away

As you run to the large, steel gate that lets you free from this world

Pointing at me and scorning me as the malicious dictator of your experiences

Squealing and running to your sanities you are used to.

But you don’t realize that I am just an Alice 

Who followed the rabbit just a little too far and

Got lost in this chaos of logic. 

I too am taken away by the fierce control of the gale

And captain that slowly sinking vessel you rode on.

I take the first harpoon and aim it at the monster’s reflecting eye,

While reckless waves threaten to tear us both to shreds

I am not the crown of this existence;

I am the fighter in this hurricane of thoughts, dying to keep

Our first visitor alive. 

Yet when you run, there I stand in the sudden silence

All alone, dripping with old tears,

Nodding and understanding as you walk through those gates of freedom

For I cannot escape from this world. 

I’ve buried the key to the door in my heart, imprisoned by my own foolishness

And now this world is all I know. 

So welcome, if you dare

To venture past the golden wheat of my locks, the jest of my outgoing smile, and

The tropical green of my jaunty eyes

To the permanent residence of the Cheshire Cat, Mad Hatter, and Rabbit

And their lone companion, me