Gum Wrapper Heart

Even as we carry the whole world

On our backs, we

Breathe our girlhood through

Whispers and giggles at the lunch table and

Stars brushed across eyelids that have

Scattered themselves onto cheeks, and

Sparkles in our eyes as we

Watch the snow squall outside twirl

Into a slow, fluttering waltz;

With hard-earned muscles, we

Grow stronger with every stroke, tired but

With the determination of a six year-old trying

to fly (as we truly do), colorful

In our rainbow tie-backs and water bottles lining

The edge of the pool, six

In the morning and

Swimming strong to Beyoncé;

We write endless papers and

Streak whiteboards with questions we’re

Not sure we’ll ever

Find the answers to, but

Smile still into notebooks and 

Painted nails perfect and chipped (they’re

Obviously all beautiful);

We carry so much weight and yet

I sat in pre-calc today with

A gum wrapper heart from my friend, and

It matched my heart as it fluttered

With girlhood: both

Frivolous wishes and

Dreams I’ve hard-earned won, with 

Tears and grit and

Every time I’ve refused

To give up.