dedication

My first words were for my mother.

I was literate at three, already smarter

than most of the children of her friends,

and she wanted it to stay that way until the end.

But as I grew tired of her expectations,

and stopped blindly pushing past my limitations,

I found that what really brought me happiness

was my increasing mindlessness

of the commands she would toss at me

to try and shape me into the person she wanted me to be.

She only wanted the best,

but somewhere along the way, she left

behind some consideration

for my feelings on the situation.

So I've thought and pondered and mulled and felt,

that my last words should just be for myself.