i have the wherewithal to breathe by myself
my lungs work on their own
i have a tenderness to my skin,
a firmness to my feet,
a heart young enough to learn but old enough to remember
“i wanna be happy, i’m ready to walk into my room without looking for you” plays on the highway
i pass a billboard for a baby that was just born
recalling a laurel canyon know-it-all, desperate for the answers
belonging to an ocean of aspiring philosophers
they pine for enlightenment but will always fall just short of the core
the center that every girl reaches by the time forbidden fruit’s consequences are felt
to them, words hold less meaning,
hurt nips but does not scathe,
bruises remain superficial
we were born to bleed;
blessed with an inextricable connection to one another
but cursed with the intolerable burden of constant awareness
how can you begin to understand?
that i am fallible too
this deity you once adorned
now cast to the earth
i was just a girl
