Once a child
With a world so wide
The sky so close
I could spread my arms like wings
Reach for the warmth of the sun
Feel the fall of rainbows
Washing over me
Leaving me vivid
I was color 
Soft like petals 
Opening for the first time
Mouthing words 
Becoming sound
Spelling my own name
Always
Dreaming forward

More than a girl
Less than a woman
Learning power 
The curve of my smile
To sway my own hips
A request to hold my hand
A first dance
To feel the sensation of a kiss on tender lips
The beauty of an ache
The saturation of my own heat
Covering another's body
Experiencing the glory in hurts
Understanding my own name
Still
Dreaming forward

A woman now
Collecting old things
Shouldering the weight of fallen stars
That scorch the skin
Looking up at an indifferent moon
Feeling filtered light
Understanding the echo of all that shatters
With feet firmly planted on the ground
Redefining laughter
Rethinking self
Adjusting to the loss of things
A shoe 
A key
A house
A man
My mind
Myself
Checking for a pulse
Hearing its beat whispering silence
Remembering my name
Recalling the gift of
Dreaming forward