Seventeen

When I was younger I used to play

with Barbies for hours,

imagining who I would be when I was seventeen.

Then I grew up.

Not over night.

Each day, each step

Made me

Older.

Wiser.

Stronger.

Whacking a ball into a rectangular net with force-

taught me how to work as a member of a team.

Inhaling eight miles of cool crisp air with my trainers on my feet-

exposed me to endurance.

The shifting of my fingers across the smooth keys of a piano and cold metal of a clarinet-

installed diligence.

The slim brush that lay in between my fingers-

unveiled creativity.

Hiking boots that crunch leaves on an autumn trail-

instated appreciation for beauty.

But there is so much to life.

I am still growing up.

I have so much more to explore.

The world has so much more to reveal.