coming of age

when did they stop
writing about us?
when did they decide
we’re not young enough
to make mistakes?
when did they turn on us?
tell us one wrong turn
could lead to lifelong disaster,
all because you’re 30
and time is running out.

-

running from hard choices
like my life depends on it
I think about it all the time —
is this the last person
I will kiss for forever?
will we procreate,
create a fucked up child
all because it was written
in the rule book?
silly me,
I thought the world gave up
on those traditions
but they were just pushed back a few years
and now it’s like
I got a calendar reminder
for a meeting I can’t miss,
but didn’t know about.

-

wonder if there’s a way out
escape to a place
where age is but a number
your hair doesn’t go gray
and you’re not expected
to change your face
with botox and filler
because I like getting older
these days it’s such a crime
to see life past that fateful age
and know it’s still mine
to paint and to make
to love and to lose
to fail and to learn
and make peace with the change.

-

this metamorphosis
like i’m brand new
coming out of the womb
a feeling I never knew
fresh eyes and lullabies
the sweet song of growing
we’re so caught up in avoiding it —

the beauty in coming of age.