Unpredictable

I’m not afraid – it’s welcome

I anticipate the future,

With uncertainty, with faith,

With all the things I know,

Even though, perhaps,

Everything will change

In fact, it will

It has happened before

It’s best, I’ve learned,

Not to overthink it.

I’ve learned everything from swimming

Discipline, persistence, respect

Since I joined the swim team,

When I was nine years old,

I’ve learned a lot about myself

My strengths and weaknesses,

Why I’m thankful

That I didn’t quit

When things were inevitably different

From what I expected.

What more should I expect

For my future?

“What will I do,”

I ask, “in three years

When I’m in debt,

Graduated, smarter,

But entirely clueless?”

The future, I’ve learned,

Is unpredictable.

My plans have changed

In kindergarten,

I wanted to be an artist

In sixth grade: an architect

Ninth grade: a dietician

Twelfth grade: a neuroscientist

Now: an immunologist

Apparently, I’ve learned that,

Whatever I do, wherever I go,

I must have a pool membership.