She died for beauty
The images from the others.
The standards placed inside her head,
To make her yet another.

She died just for them,
To be as pretty as she could seem.
All the beauty surrounding, suffocating,
Her own a faraway dream.

She died trying to be pretty
But she felt she never could be,
As hard as she tried, as much as she could,
She had to face reality.

She died for beauty
Her own completely hidden.
Reality bites back, hard,
And her sadness comes unbidden.

She did not die in vain,
Sympathy comes from the others.
They don't understand what they did to her,
She is just another.

You were the sole purpose I lived.
I always thought of you.
All the time I dreamed of you.
You were on my mind.
You were the bright star that made me smile.
You were everything to me.
You cheered me up.
You listened to me.
You brightened my day, made it worth while.
I honestly, truly believed,
I loved you.
Notice how it's all Past Tense?

As he tells his stories, I watch, curious.

Does he ever feel the body walking next to him,
The one whose life ended so quickly.
Does he feel the ghost of his friend?

Does he hear the guns firing, the bombs booming,
The cries of his fellow soldiers.
Do the sounds play over, terrifying music without melody?

Does he ever close his eyes and see the battlefield?
The destruction wrought by only man.
Did he ever take a step and feel as if he was on their soil?

Does he ever turn around when called by name,
And expect to see his fellow fallen soldier?
Does he ever turn and expect to see the war raging behind him?

Do the images haunt his nightmares, his dreams?
Or worse, do they haunt his waking moments?
Has he been able to find happiness, after all he has saw?
I only hope he did.

She smiled, I didn't-

She loved more than I ever could.

She fought, I wouldn't-

She overcame more than I ever would.



She hoped, I couldn't-

She had more faith than I ever could.

She shined, I didn't-

She had more courafe than I ever would.



She inspired, I learned-

I will love the life I live,

The one I am still living.

I am a girl threatened by change and by ridicule.

I am a girl sensitive to the problems in the world.

I am a girl unsure of how to solve them.



I am a daughter who cherishes her parents.

I am a sister who admires her sibling.



I am a girl subject to uncertainties and doubts.

I am a girl eager to see needy people helped.

I am a girl who questions religion and government.



I am a teenager struggling to assert her identity.

I am a student not guaranteed success.



I am a girl haunted by her own insecurity.

I am a girl desperate for a better place.

I am a girl aching for peace in the world.



I am a person, praying for a decent life.

I am a human being, wary of the world.