It was the way she looked at me.
The way her eyes stared at me intently
Hearing
Seeing
Experiencing
Me
Herself
That moment

Taking it in
Taking me in.

It was the way she stared at me.
That made my first poetry thing
Feel like a thing.

Girl with the black braids
In the front
Eyes mud
Squinting
Head tilted
Slightly
I fumbled through pages
She held me.

In her gaze
Underneath her face
I felt a hint of it,
Her praise
She stared at me
Eyes captured me
At my first poetry thing.