Exile in Paradise

This week I went to Anaheim for an engineering conference. It was my first trip back to California since moving back east in 2010.

Looking back, the three years I lived in San Diego, while enjoyable, felt a little bit like exile from family and friends back east. The main reason my wife and I moved back east was I couldn’t afford to live here and be a college student.

I was an exile in paradise
After dropping out of college twice
Lies I was told as a teenager
To follow my dreams led to failure
Now for my hubris I pay the price

Acclimating to winters so nice
After growing up with snow and ice
It only served as a reminder
I was an exile

The dreams I was forced to sacrifice
Revealed a path that proved more precise
Rather than a total disaster
I found a new talent to master
I would not drop out of college thrice
I was an exile

© 2020 by Benjamin Goodrich