Paper Castles

I stored my dreams in paper castles
They lay like rags upon the floors
Some stacked neatly in the corners
Others hiding silently behind the doors

I stored them there many years ago
Thinking I'd revisit them soon enough
But years and years have whisked slowly by
And those dreams now hide beneath dusty stuff

Beneath "realistic" goals and "attainable" work
Beneath "maybe, should of, could of"
Beneath disguises and masks and "tried too hard"
Beneath "just settling" and "almost would of"

Through layers of failed opportunities
And dusty piles of doubts and dead ends
Just beneath the surface of "you're not qualified"
I think these dreams could rise again

A Phoenix among the ashes
Of these brittle, paper walls
The dreams that once made these castles strong
And roamed freely through these halls

I watch those paper castles with cautious curiosity
They sway and bend as my mind drifts back
The familiar winds of dreams and ideas forgotten
Shake the walls and beckon me back

The paper castles are now falling
Tumbling and swirling on the breeze
Laying bare those dreams in paper castles
Dust them off, clean them up, and proceed