Take away the trembling hands and the half-closed eyes. Take away the late nights, the drunken insomnia. Take away the sadness. Take away the paper-thin screaming faces and their half-clenched hands. Take away the jagged holes in plaster walls. Take away the pain in broken pens and shredded paper. Take away the fear of failure. Take away the fear of success.

Take away the miles traveled to homes that weren’t there. Take away the packed suitcase and the emptied closets. Take away the wandering heart, the unsatisfied loneliness. Take away the urge to run, the itching feet and their half-laced boots. Take away the weary shadows underneath blurry eyes. Take away the fear of doubt. Take away the fear of hope.

And in your hands is a juice-box. And the sun is shining. And the grass is green, and the sky is blue. And in your hands is a juice-box, and between your lips is its straw. And in that moment, you are the happiest that you have ever been.