I Am All Of Them.

I was the little girl down the street

frolicking in the tall grass

I waited for new friends in the summer heat

but no one ever came

I was the little boy in the library

reading his schooling away

"I wanted a new teacher," he said

but the ones he had learned from were fairies

I was the timid girl hiding in a closet

staying out of her drunk father's gaze

But he beat me and broke me

I could only see in a haze

I was the outgoing one leading the parade

I danced through the streets

I ran through the crowd

I celebrated all that we had made

I was the heartbroken one curled up to sleep

I cried and I stopped eating

My heart plummeted and weeped

I promised, "Never to love again!" as I fell asleep

Now, they've all come and gone

My past selves and I

We've become better and reconciled

Without a public eye.

We've shed some tears,

We've fought some wars, 

but we haven't given a second thought

to the self that is here and now.

I am the baker,

The runner, not the candlestick maker

I am forgiven and forgotten

I am the shoulder to lean on

I am the engineer in training

I am the theater technician

I am the painter, the artist

I am the worrier

I am the perfectionist

I am the determination and stupidity

I am the most stubborn and cockeyed

I am the mistakes and corrections

I am all of them: the best yet.