During the first month
of band class,
You can’t even make a sound,
You get tired, frustrated,
And you ask yourself why you even did it.

During the third month
Of band class,
You are at the point,
Where you get so excited
When you can play twinkle twinkle,
Without missing a note.

During the fifth month
Of band class,
You feel like it’s going pretty well,
You still know you ****,
But you still think you might want to stick with it.

The first year has gone by,
And you are definitely doing it again.
The year finished strong,
And you feel great.

Then middle school goes by,
You think you’re all that,
So you go onto high school.

During the freshman year,
In marching band,
Things get hard,
But you learn that it’s kind of like a family,
You stick together through thick and thin.

During the senior year,
In band,
you realize that you made it,
No matter how hard things got,
And you are so glad you didn’t quit.

After you graduate,
You think back all to of the
Cold, rainy, football games,
The gross band competitions,
And you know that if you were told,
To go back and perform with them again,
You would.

My words stick to the
Roof of my mouth like peanut butter,
Like white bread,
And no matter how hard they try,
They can’t escape.
Lucky to make it past my brain’s thick fortress,
Now they sit useless at the tip of my tongue,
Wishing to come forth but my mouth
Not forming the words.
My vowels languish in my throat and
My consonants sit listless,
All my verb phrases and direct objects
Lie in a jumbled mess,
Too disheartened to make a move.
They know that if they leave my lips,
Others will take them and cut them up,
Mince them like onions,
But the only person who will cry over them is
Me.
Eventually, too many letters will clamor at my
Lips for attention, and my throat will
Close entirely,
Never fessing,
Admitting,
Confessing,
The things I feel.

Lovers, forget your quarrels and
Listen to the flower,
The breeze,
The finch’s tune,
And find the love in them.
Breathe
And win the fight within
Yourself
And then, lovers, your
Fight will be
A hundred miles away.

I've never been a huge socializer,
and that's really all,
that people seem to do at football games.
So, why even go?
Well, now that I'm a member of the marching band,
it looks like I have to.
I mean, last night I never really thought that I'd have fun.
I mean, who wants to just go and scream for 3 hours?
I guess I do.
Last night was amazing.
You get to just be yourself,
and you just forget about everything.
You just realize more and more through the game,
that's it's just about having a blast and playing songs,
to keep the team going.
There we were, waving our instruments,
screaming for our team,
and having the time of our lives.
Now, I know for a fact,
that at the end of the season,
I will do anything to go back,
and do it all again...

Rainbows that appear out of nowhere
Cozy sweatshirts
Hot chocolate on a cold winter night
Musicals so good they give you chills
Movie marathons
Books that make you cry, make you feel
“I miss you” texts
Laughing so hard you can’t breathe
Pens that are full of ink
The smell of pancakes
A baby’s grin when you pinch it’s cheeks
Teachers who make their class enjoyable
Inside jokes that you laugh about for years afterward
Smiles from that specific person
Butterflies that land on your finger
A cat’s purr
When a piece of music you’re rehearsing finally sounds perfect
Hairties that don’t break
That perfect gift from that specific person
Receiving a letter
The smell of Christmas trees
Long, meaningful hugs
That happy baby sound
Creating memories with friends
The leaps and twists of talented dancers
Realizing you are early to the meeting
Your favorite TV shows
Adorable baby clothes
When you finally find a pair of jeans that fit
The relief of jumping into the cool lake on a blistering day
The smell of a new box of Crayolas
Feeling inspired
Writing poetry

In the dark
The beast,
The inward struggle
Is not asleep.
The cold creeps,
Comfort grows far away,
My heart doubts
But we arise with the day.