We All Carry Ghosts

✩ Introduction ✩

This collection is a gathering of poetry and short prose pieces that explores grief, loss, growing up, and learning how to let go of things that once were, but are no longer. In a sense, this collection asks what it is that truly makes us human, that makes us most alive, that makes our souls ache and burn and explode with purpose.

I wrote this collection for the lost girls, the ones who experience death and heartache and mockery but do not know that anyone understands—that I know what it is to look at the moon and wonder what it would be like to go back to Neverland, if only for another moment. That yearning is what led me to begin this journey. Each piece is its own story, but is also part of a larger story; what began as ideas and intangible threads turned into the ghosts of one girl's transition to adolescence.

In the past, I've always used poetry as a way to process really difficult emotions and experiences. But this collection isn't about processing; it's about reflecting and looking back on some of the most pivotal moments of my life; it's about embracing the ghosts that we all carry.

Grief is the most prevalent theme of this collection, but it is also one of the most prevailing themes that I weave into almost everything I write, no matter the form or genre. I think that grief embeds itself into my writing primarily because of the premature death of my friend, who passed away right before we graduated high school. It sounds cliché, but the moment I knew with a deafening finality that he was gone, everything changed because I don't think we ever really understand how precious and fragile life is until death rips someone away from us.

Ever since that moment, I've been on a quest to craft a piece that somehow manages to capture that savage, raw, visceral feeling you get when you realize that the person you once knew is gone, even if you know that they are in a better place. I also don't want to limit my writing to portraying only one type of grief because I strongly believe we experience grief in a multitude of ways: it's not just something we feel when someone we love dies. It's the feeling we have when a friendship falls apart; when we don't get the relationship we've always dreamed of; when we fall in love with the wrong person; when we grieve the loss of a moment that has yet to pass; or even when we lose a part of ourselves to our circumstances. Grief is multi-faceted, and I think that a big part of my goal with this collection is to begin tapping into those different types of grief that we experience throughout life.

Writing and compiling this collection has been a journey spanning many years. Some of them were created years ago, and some of them are a little more recent. Regardless, I think that they come together to create a tapestry of emotions that many of us experience throughout our life, but don't always have the words to express.

So, to the souls who find themselves reading this collection: Thank you.

Thank you for clicking on this book and giving it a chance.

Thank you for trusting me with these emotions and delicate parts of our lives.

I hope that these poems and stories are able to help you remember that you are not alone in your darkness. I hope that my words are able to reach into your darkness and offer hope that things will get better.

I hope that this collection feels like a companion when you look up at that bright moon and wonder if someone sees you.

I see you, and this is for you. <3