twelve months of dreaming

I have this dream 

where the sky is dark, 

moon illuminating, 

faded stars surrounding it, 

that I gaze at from 

the top of my roof. 

I have this dream 

where I run around in 

a field with my best friend 

and flowers of our laughter 

begin to bloom, 

as we enjoy these nights 

while we’re still young. 

I have this dream 

where I bike through 

my neighborhood, 

watching the golden sunset 

blanket the houses 

as I ride by in silence. 

I have this dream 

where my friend 

drives me around at night, 

and we blast our music loud 

with our takeout in hand, 

as our eyes absorb the brightness 

of each stoplight. 

I have this dream 

where my summers 

stopped feeling lifeless, 

where summer work 

stopped being handed out, 

where the word “teenager” 

stopped sounding like “adult.” 

I have this dream 

where my freedom 

was granted, 

where smiling 

brought you back to life, 

where being a teenager 

was more about 

taking advantage of time 

and not preparing for something 

too far away to even think about.