Life is indeed an incredible journey
when I was young I grew up in a different place
that place was the cause of many wars

When we left there, I was a mere child and
it was to allow us children the opportunity
for a better life and a chance for normalcy

Yet learning a new language, being ostracized
feeling the pain of being different and carrying
the stigma of being a foreigner was a heavy burden

And were all part of the process of assimilation
of fitting in, of being like everyone else
oft a painful journey both physically and mentally

Years of being different, melding to become the same
and so over time you blend in, the differences becoming
less stark, day by day, year by year

Then as if by magic you are one of them
you graduate high school and college and get a job
you have children, own a home and a standing in the community

You realize that there comes a time to forgive
forgive your parents for taking you from your old home
where you knew who you were and looked like everyone else

Forgive the other kids that bullied you and made you feel unwanted
for they were kids being kids and didn’t know any other way
to accept someone from someplace else

Forgive yourself for feeling the way you did towards them
for in the end we all learn, learn to adapt, learn about acceptance
and learn to forgive.

Andreas Simic©

When I was 7, I knew exactly what Love looked like.

I knew Love had blond hair, blue eyes
cute freckles and a crooked smile.

Love was the fastest boy at recess.
He would push me on the swing set so that my feet flew
and touched the cotton wool clouds.
He shared his snacks with me because
well, 7 year olds are gentlemen like that and
I knew that we were meant to be.

Until we weren’t.

Because 7 year olds grow
and change
and from one day to the next
they are no longer the same.

Love now had brown hair, and brown eyes
so dark and rich I melted into them
like chocolate between fingertips on a warm summer day.
We read books together
like the true intellectual 7 year olds we were
and bonded over
stories about cats in hats?
It wasn’t the world’s most groundbreaking love story
but it was our love story
and that was good enough for our little hearts.

But that love faded away too.

I, in turn, grew and changed
and moved away.
I juggled languages with sports
and friendships and hell
the struggles of being a teenage girl
!
that I didn’t even stop to think about
where Love had gone.
I figured I would see him in the hallway
at some point
maybe
but he was definitely around somewhere!
We were probably just taking different classes
and had slightly different interests…
But I knew I’d run into him eventually!

It took me 4 years to come across Love again.
I hardly recognised him at first—
he had the same dark eyes, but this time his
skin was the colour of the coffee my dad drinks every morning.
His jawline was sharper than any knife in my kitchen
and his cheekbones were higher up on his face.
His dark eyebrows grew wildly across his forehead
but his grin was unmistakable.

Love had grown at least a foot since the last time I’d seen him.
He was an athlete, except instead of running at recess
he now ran sprints for the athletics team.
Love’s love for books hadn’t changed either
but he’d replaced the stories of hungry caterpillars
for novels, and plays, and poetry.

It was when Love made the same joke
and I heard him laugh the same laugh
that I realised Love didn’t come in a fixed package.
Love was not something you ordered online
that came delivered with a pretty ribbon at your doorstep
a dress you could try on and send back if the fit wasn’t right.
Love doesn’t have
a religion
a nationality
a sexuality.

Love is someone
who listens when you tell them about your day
even on the worst of days
not necessarily to give you advice
or because what you have to say is particularly exciting
but just because they want to know.

Love is someone
who you can talk to at any time of the day
the person at the other end of the phone at 3AM
when you need to cry because everything is wrong
but also the person who will take you to the park at on a Sunday afternoon
when the sun is shining, and the birds are chirping
and your worries
are wrapped in a soap bubble
and gone with a gust of wind.

Love always thinks you look beautiful.
Love likes your hair both up and down
thinks you look great in that bikini
that your makeup looks good today
but that you could also do without it.
Love thinks you’re prettiest when you’re smiling
but that’s not to say you’re not pretty when you cry.

Love is not always the person you would expect.
But do not judge Love for the body it comes in.
Judge Love for their taste in socks
and Disney movies
and candy bars
and sports teams.
For their opinions on politics
and peanut butter
the importance of family
and the new Snapchat update.

These little quirks which define Love
are what will decide whether you are meant to be.
NOT the body you encounter them in.

“Happy birthday, kiddo!
We got you this drum!”
Were the last words heard in my home.

Now it’s:
Bang bang bang.
Boom boom boom.
Bang boom. Bang boom.
Boom bang. Boom bang.
How fun.

What a fun fun fun toy.
So much **** fun.
He bangs the drum.
We hear the drum.
The neighbors hear the drum.
Strangers walking past our house hear the drum.
People who live down the street, around the corner, across the highway, right next to the construction zone hear the drum.

You can’t not hear this drum.
It’s. So. Fun.
So so so much ****
          -- BOOM BANG BOOM BANG BOOM --
                    Fun.

“Happy day-after-your-birthday, kiddo!
We got you this very soft and incredibly silent stuffed hippo!”

Let us never speak of the drum again.

Kid Number One got all the attention.
Classes and playgroups and that’s not to mention,

The toys!
Oh the toys, oh the hundreds of toys.
Kid Number One simply had TOO MANY TOYS!

A kitchen, a dollhouse, crayons galore.
Enough princess dresses to fill up ten drawers!

An easel, a ball pit, a bear that gives hugs.
Everything sold by Melissa & Doug!

So for Kid Number Two, what do we do?
“Hey buddy, mom’s tired. Go play with this shoe.”

There once was a girl
Who collected all creatures
All with at least one curl
she had screechers
And when passing she would say hi merl
Or hey mr. preachers
But all of them were well
Well fed well mannered and even well.. Pampered
For if they wanted anything they would just ring a bell
They would scamper
Here and scamper there
For every where they may play
As long as they don't touch their hair
Then they may do as wish as long as they obey
It was a sad thing if they did not listen
For example the day casey braided her hair
Oh how her eyes did glisten
With a mischievous flair
When she was caught you could see realization in her eyes
And soon after her hair was bleached and turned green
And tried a many lies.
But the look Gave her away
now i am sure you can find the moral. But if you can’t i will help do not disobey
your elders or they may dye your hair.