Preserved in a Poem

I have found the story

Of a young girl who thought she knew the world,

Idealistic and overly-praised as she was,

Running free as her wild ocean eyes.

I have found the story

Of a twelve-year-old who lost herself trying to please others,

Optimistic and untouched by the world’s suffering,

Singing proudly because nobody told her that she was off-key.

I have found the story

Of a teenager wearing shorts that made her dad squirm,

Craving the thrills that would mark her as a true adolescent,

Yet craving the safety of innocence that she no longer had.

I have found the story

Of a college student who tried to leave her stories behind,

Who thought she lost her identity when she left her old friends,

A girl who finally found her future in her past.

I have found the story

Of all that I am;

My poems tame the sting of loss and memory,

And show me who I will become.