I used to have a keychain,
It didn’t bear my name.
My keys would dangle from it
Like my secrets and my shame
I used to keep my doors locked tight 
So no one could get inside 
I thought it best for keeping safe
I dared not open wide 
And the older that I grew, 
I had so much more to guard
My antiques and collectibles, 
the flowers in my yard.
I’d say, “Don’t assume what’s mine is yours, what is mine is only mine.”
That was how I’d hold on tight.
That way I’d be fine 
No giving meant no taking 
No letting others in
Kept my shadows hidden 
And the truth beneath my skin
And then one day a breeze blew by and on it, heard my voice
(Or, that of some angel)
telling me I had a choice–
I could keep my windows 
all closed up,
I could keep my doors locked tight 
Or, I could take a risk, 
and open up to light
Unlock everything,
let it open wide 
Throw away the keys 
that kept others from inside
And if what they saw, they hated?
Well, that was their right to choose, but if I took a chance, the wind had said, 
I’d really none to lose
Now I have a keychain 
with nothing but my name
No keys to dangle to from it
I have no secrets and no shame
There’s a keychain in my pocket, 
Reach down, say my name,
There’s a keychain in my pocket,
What once was lost, regained

I’m in a rented 2014 Gray Hyundai Sonata heading north on some road in Massachusetts there’s a Red Wing Blackbird sitting on a tree on the side and the DJ just had to switch to another CD player live on the radio because the first one wouldn’t work. He just finished playing a beautiful acoustic guitar version of Rebel Rebel sung in Portuguese. I’m on my way to York to jump in a car with Sue and Bobby Jo and go hear them perform in Durham, New Hampshire. Tomorrow I will walk along the beach, and on Saturday, my friend from 1977 will accompany me at a show where my daughter will sing original music in front of a crowd. Life is good.