You Cannot

You cannot gain,

If you have never lost,

You cannot Fly,

If you never jump,

You cannot communicate,

If you do not speak,

You cannot face your fears,

If you do not look them in the eye,

You cannot bask in the light,

If you have never drudged through the darkness,

You cannot stand your ground,

If you do not fall into your beliefs,

You cannot feel love,

If you have never shown love. 

Love is earned, 

Love is meant to be expressed,

You cannot expect to be gifted,

What you do not share,

You cannot receive,

If at first you do not give,

 You cannot open a new door,

If you don't close the old one,

The love you show others,

Will in the long run,

Be returned tenfold, 

You cannot go through life being afraid,

If you never practice courage,

If you do not stand toe to toe with thine enemy,

You cannot expect to stand on the same side of the tracks,

You cannot expect someone to give you a helping hand,

If you used yours to hold them back,

You cannot begin a new chapter of your life's book, |

If you only continue to re-read the one before,

You cannot expect to move forward,

If you only look towards the past,

You cannot expect to grow or move on,

If you hold on to your past,

You cannot allow yourself to be free, 

If at first you don't let go,

You cannot become who you were meant to be,

If you do not release who you once were,

You cannot look forward to tomorrow,

If you only live for today,

You cannot get your own flowers to grow,

If you are busy watering theirs,

You cannot heal a wound,

If you only continue to re-open the last, 

But you can use the scar to remind you,

You are tougher than your past.