When the inspiration came, I wanted to tell the story of my students, not any particular one but an amalgam of those I met over the years. The result is this acoustic, country-tinged ballad entitled Janie's Song. Lyrics are below.
Janie was the new girl, she had trouble making friends
At that age, there's no easy kind of change.
She was bullied every day, before we cared what that was
livin' with a most familiar pain
Janie was the only child from a single parent home
Just her and mom alone against the world
She saw this as a dead end town, next generation stickin' around
stickin' to the same script as before
I've been in your shoes--
Singing awkward off-key teenage blues
And your good heart my be denied
You'll come out stronger on the other side
Leave this far behind you in a couple of years
I guess all that I'm tryin' to say, is Janie, wipe away those tears
One day she put her head down, wouldn't talk to anyone
I whispered "you can always trust in me"
The burdens these kids carry around would break the backs of most
And your heart will not allow your eyes to see
Janie came to me and cried, said she might take her own life,
"Nobody here would miss me if I died"
I would miss what you could do with the good heart that's inside of you
You're just a seed and the flower's still to come
I've been in your shoes--
Singing awkward off-key teenage blues
And your good heart my be denied
You'll come out stronger on the other side
Leave this far behind you in a couple of years
I guess all that I'm tryin' to say, is Janie, wipe away those tears