Poison - Rates

So what to do with my time

Mend my broken ties

So many hopeless nights

Tokin' and smokin' pipes

Standing at a crossroad

Go straight, I hope I’m right

Had my party time, now it’s business

Ain’t no joking eyes

I learned to grow inside

You heard it left my past behind

But I can feel it catching up

No pause and it’s a fast rewind

Time to meet my maker

Now only defeat can break ya

Prayed and said I’d change, won’t stay the same

Don’t know if we can take ya

Aren’t ya meant to be the saviour?

Why’d you go and turn away?

Stuck in an urn, unconcerned as I burn in flames

«What aren’t you learning Rates?»

«You have to put the effort in»

I tried and I survived and now I’m putting that on everything

Maybe with my words, I could be a person of influence

Whatever you’re doing, abusing, trust me I was into it

Hey, you need to walk away

Your life is more important aye

While I’m recording all these thoughts, it’s time to throw it all away

I thought that I would stay behind

Maybe I could change your mind?

Blazing on a pipe will send you crazy 'till your brain is fried

Wait up, straight up

Victim of your hometown

Think you need advice, I’m saying maybe you could slow down

All your fucking mates do it

Sucking on that sweet puff

Trust me, you don’t need that shit

Soon you’re acting heaps tough

Physically impaired, you can’t swim when the sea’s rough

Keep it up and live beneath the ground before the leaves touch

A message for my listeners

As the pipe glistens it hissin' like a serpent

Gotta serve it like a prison stick

But fuck that, you can break the chains of addiction

'Cause every toke of every pipe and every rock is made different

Wait in the car and watch the office on a Thursday

Break the safe and take the pay that was meant for your work mates

Now you’re stoopin' way lower

Your mum’s on her way over

You’re taking her money, she’s in a Terios not a Range Rover

You push away your friends and you think that they can’t help

You need to persevere 'cause you’re the master of your dark world

It’s past 12

Im sitting up still writing this

And I can fucking say I’m fucking happy I ain’t high as shit

An epidemic that’s deadly and fillin' cemeteries

Youth with an appetite for drugs like a secondary

Country in denial, denying that it’s gettin' heavy

Proof is in the picture

Will it hit ya or forgot the memory

They turn their back on the junky with the stash to burn

If they gave him help he wouldn’t raw as much for cash to earn

But they need to tax you first

The dealer, he ain’t paying that

So they’re unconcerned, nothing to earn when you’re blazin' that

If you needin' help you need to breathe it, just believe yourself

You can be the person you need to be

I’ve seen myself

I needed to say, «Wake up before it’s too late»

Just dream of the place you wanna be and then you’ll do great

Your life isn’t worthless, you’re finding a purpose

You’re caught up in a cycle, if you fight it, it’s worth it

You want respect?

I guarantee you get respect then

Give yourself respect just to show you don’t respect them