Would You Rather Be

Would you rather be happy or famous 
Flawed or blameless?
You think fame will give you a name
Raise your status
Erase your shame

But only you can do that 
To thine own self be true 
Don’t be chasing after visions
Just simply be you 

Fame doesn’t erase your pain
It adds more to your already full plate 
Stresses you out, while what remains is inner hate 

Actually worsens what you came out to fix  
Now you’re in a world surrounded by even more pricks

More naysayers, and more noise 

When really all you wanted was a quiet space
To relieve yourself of your woes 
Release the burdens from your head to your toes 

Why not just skip all the illusory games? 
Work on your self-acceptance instead of chasing fame 

Lay down a foundation of care and compassion 
And who knows, maybe after it all, you’ll get known for your passion 

But is that really the priority 
And could you even bear it?

With your current self-talk, I’d all but swear that

You can’t handle any more pressure, any more burdens 
The way you tear yourself down, those inner voices—
You heard ‘em?