• I am from the spoils of a comforting, loving family.
    The sweetness of home-cooking,
    of the squeaky floorboards of a cozy old home
    with a swamp cooler that feels so nice on a hot summer day.

    I am from the summer camp,
    with too many activities and bossy adults,
    where I made a best friend to share with the
    sleepless slumber parties,
    boy-crazed giggles,
    and stupid, pointless fights.

    I am from the girl who never quite fit in;
    tossed aside for
    the vain, vicious ones
    who stab backs in the end.
    A broken heart cries itself to sleep.
    It forgives but
    never, ever forgets.

    I am from the oversized U-Haul truck,
    conveying its bearers to weeks of loneliness in a new, foreign place.
    And then the friends are made,
    and oh how the fun begins!
    Common place becomes the love, support, and drastic sugar highs.
    Meeting the love my life—
    mender of my pain,
    restorer of my worth,
    abolisher of my insecurities.

    I am from a beginning
    a middle
    but not quite an end.