Writing

The day I lost my youth completely

the sweet scent of childhood

swept away by the sharp,

tangy,

sensation of adolescence.

I have chased after my hopes and dreams

It was a small bracelet; it was black and braided rope, with the words “ I love you forever” on it.  My mom gave it to me on my 15th birthday. She didn't make a big deal about it. She just smiled and wrapped it around my wrist.

As my parents would put it,

in a funk.

As my friends would put it,

depressed

or

tired.

How I put it,

aware of real life and frustrated and upset.

I hold a dandelion to my lips,

The skeletal puff of its existence -

And I blow on it gently

After thinking hard:

What should I wish for?

For my friends to never have to leave?

To stop being so behind

I want to love.

Do you know that?

Do you all know that?

I want to love.

I want to scream it to the universe.

I want to live

I want to laugh

At first, it is boring

irritating

because I don't want to be there.

But quickly

as I enter the woods

the cool, damp springy air

tinted with the scent of ferns that lie on either side of the trail.