Stepping to Maturity | Teen Ink

Stepping to Maturity

August 23, 2018
By sam_schulmanBHS BRONZE, Bexley, Ohio
sam_schulmanBHS BRONZE, Bexley, Ohio
1 article 0 photos 0 comments

Favorite Quote:
to live is the rarest thing in the world. most people exist. that is all. -Oscar Wilde


I jump down the last three steps,
like I always do
racing forward once I land.
I am unaware
I do not care.
Learning 123s and ABCs.
Playing peekaboo,
and leaving the door open just a crack
to let the light in,
and the monsters out.
A stuffed animal under arm
slowly drifting to sleep
This is when dreams form
a time to purely believe and create.
Searching for a shooting star
And make a wish.
It will come true
It has to.
You were once me.
 
I jump down the last three steps
sometimes only two
I used to race forwards,
but I find myself slow
once I hit the ground.
Becoming aware.
But I still don’t care.
Friendship bonds form.
Monsters are no longer real.
Shooting stars stop working.
Dreams expand
Dreams seem real.
Achievable.
Stuck thinking in the future
wondering and hoping
what I will become.
You were once me.
 
Walking down the stairs
with my friends
approaching the end
I am confronted with a choice
do I walk down the last three steps?
Or do I jump?
I want to jump
but I walk down the last three
I do care.
 
I walk down those last three stairs
not thinking twice,
but walking straight ahead.
I have stopped searching
for shooting stars.
I have stopped living
completely
carefree.
I am now you.
 


The author's comments:

While writing this poem I thought a lot about introspection and reflecting on the journey one takes to mature. I hope that the reader can read this and think about his or her own experiances maturing.


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This article has 1 comment.


on Aug. 27 2018 at 10:08 pm
FluffMania BRONZE, Republic, Missouri
2 articles 0 photos 22 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Your need for acceptance can make you invisible in this world." -Jim Carrey

It was very clever of you to use the act of walking downstairs as a metaphor for the descent into becoming an adult that doesn't have a zest for life anymore. I can relate to this a lot myself. It's hard to be goofy when everyone tells you to be practical or mature. It gets even more confusing when you conform to their standards as per request, then they tell you to be unique.