Mismatched clothes of childhood

The mismatched clothes of childhood;
Too filled with excitement to think about what to wear.
Even when mom told me to change
I couldn’t be bothered to care. 

As long as it was magenta it was just perfect,
Striped pants and flowery shirts
Topping it off with a pair of polka-dotted sunglasses.

Too busy thinking about 
How I’d spend this day, 
24 hours used to feel like so much time.

I saw everything through my youthful eyes,
No thought was given to how the world saw me.
No thought was given to what would happen 
If I fell wrong 
Jumping off that swing;
I just jumped.

But flying can’t last forever,
I fell and skinned my knees;
Slowly coming to the realization
That I was not invincible.
That I could get hurt.

Slowly I began to see how the patterns clashed
How magenta didn’t always work,
And how other people might not approve.

The truth is 
Childhood ends
The moment you start thinking about
“What other people think.”