Self-Preservation

Sometimes you have to think first of yourself
Before you consider another.
This lesson is learned just by living your life
And not taught by school or your mother.

It’s natural to sacrifice comfort or time
To help out a friend who is needy;
But saying “I can’t” when you really cannot
Doesn’t mean that you’re selfish or greedy.

For instinct kicks in and it trumps even guilt,
So you do not need justification
To satisfy those who may challenge the choices
You’ve made for your self-preservation.

It’s hard to accept that you can’t always be
Quite as giving as your own perception.
If you’re lucky, those times won’t define who you are
And your friends will forgive the exception.