Poetry and Writes

Thirteen (WRITE)

*Write as if you are turning thirteen. This took me an undetermined amount of time.*

I imagine myself walking along the pavement in a green 1950s dress, the fallen red leaves swept before me like confetti. Others are flank- ing me and dancing. We star in an elegant musical, strutting with the jubilant climax. Thirteen! Thirteen! At last the whirl fades.

>><<

The lead sits alone in her room, chin propped in her hands, eyes focused out the window. Thirteen. Thirteen. She turns away, suppressing tears. She changes into different clothes and slams the window shut. She sits again, subdued. Thirteen.

A gentle fist knocks on her door. A friend wanders in, takes the lead's hand. The pair exits the room. The lead is bewildered but not upset.

"Thirteen," the friend whispers.

The lead tries to tug away. She is pulled into a room full of people--family members.

"Thirteen," they whisper.

"Thirteen," they sing.

The lead frowns. She sighs. She enters the throng of people, lets them congratulate her. She is irritated, she is confused. She feels nostalgic for the present, resentful of the present. She wants a camera to document this. She wants to remember it.

"Thirteen," she says. That night she cries alone into her pillows.