Time Passing Me Poem by Daniel Chapman

I'm not sure if I'm coming or going,
Some days I feel proud of the life I've built,
Other days I stare at the ceiling wondering
How something can feel so full and so empty at the same time.

I've done a lot in such a short span,
Lived hard, learned fast, carried weight early.
I'm still young, yet time whispers in my ear
Like it's already slipping through my hands.

This is the age they say you should have answers,
A direction, a plan, a clear "next step."
At least know where you're headed,
Or where you want to end up.
But I stand here unsure,
Knowing my life isn't broken—
Just not aligned.

It's not the worst life…
But it's not the one I want to keep repeating.
And that truth sits heavy in my chest.

I'm not sure if I'm coming or going,
I feel like I'm watching time walk past me
While I stand still, nodding as years wave goodbye.
I ask myself, as days blur into each other,
What have I truly accomplished?
What have I avoided?
What have I been afraid to become?

Every day I catch myself asking why—
Why am I so unsure of what I want to do,
When my heart is full of ideas and unfinished dreams?
Why does it feel like I've wasted moments
I can't get back,
While still wanting so much more from life?

So what do I do
When everything feels possible
And impossible at the same time?
When motivation comes in waves
But direction never stays long enough to follow?

I know this isn't a lost cause.
I know this confusion isn't the end of me.
Maybe this moment isn't about moving faster,
Or choosing everything all at once.

Maybe it's about stopping.
Breathing.
Listening.

Letting the noise settle.
Letting the pressure ease.
Pausing long enough
To hear my own voice again.

Because maybe I'm not lost at all—
Maybe I'm just standing at the beginning
Of something I haven't named yet.

Daniel Chapman