30 Poems in 30 Days

A Letter to A Younger Me

Poem the thirteenth (going on thirtieth?)

The author, aged thirteen

There are so many things I could tell you,
So many warnings I could give —
I, who experienced all you’ve been through,
And the lives you’ve yet you live.

I could tell you to eat better
And to enjoy the little things,
Or I could be less like my mother
And just tell you what the future brings:

You’ll move away to places strange
But never for that long;
Friends will come and go, as seasons change,
And you will never quite belong.

But do not worry, little bird,
That this new path seems bleak,
You will get to see the world,
And sometimes find the words you seek.

You will be loved. This, I swear,
He — yes he, what a surprise! —
Will see right through the mask we wear
And be the one to dry our eyes.