I liked you better

I liked you better naive,
during those rebellious years when we tried to distance ourselves from everything our parents represented.
We would stop the machine. We would change the pattern.

I liked you better when you had stars in your eyes.
We plotted our futures with such enthusiasm that we would change the world.
We explored abandoned buildings looking for something worth keeping from a place long forgotten.
We found beauty in what had been left behind, because we were left behind.

I liked you better when your wore your heart on your sleeve,
before the years of hurt piled on like bricks on a crooked foundation creating a viewpoint distorted.
We had no questions about what we believed. We knew.

I liked you better when you were real.
We did not pretend that we were okay, but wore our wounds like a badge of honor.
We had survived. We were not giving up easily. We were not going down without a fight.