I used to hate my home town

I didn’t like its reputation

I didn’t like its personality

I saw my town as an outsider would see it

I witnessed what I read in the papers

I was there to hear the stories

but then one day

my town whispered to me

“I don’t like this me either”

my town further explained

it wasn’t always this way

but then it isn’t really this way now

stop seeing the people

the users

the abusers

the misconstruers

my town explained it used to fight

it used to defend it bright shining polish

but there was just too much

scrap off this crud of present day

dig a little deeper

get past the dingy facade

I’m still here

just dig a little deeper

“I don’t like me either”

my town continued to explain

“it wasn’t always this way”

“but then”

“it’s really not me that we dislike”

“it’s you”