Back to the time when we looked forward to our teens

Even though we had no idea what that means

It was the time before high school

The time before trying to be cool

 

Back to the time when stress was only something mom had

The time when it wasn’t embarrassing to be seen with Dad

It was the time when friends were always there

The time before I cared about my hair

 

It was the time when getting drunk was unheard of

And when protection was just your mother’s love

Drugs were only what were in the medicine cabinet

Getting high was how high your swing could get

 

Hurting yourself was just a scrape on the knee

Hurting another did not mean breaking the heart of me

You could invite your friends over “to play”

Without them taking it the total wrong way

 

Everything was different than it is now

Not once do we look back and ask how

We looked forward to becoming a teen

The transformation larger than we’d foreseen

 

Lost was the innocence of our childhood

We now know more than we should

Experiencing the best and the worst

Without even stopping to think first

 

A whole new world to make

Decisions, responsibilities and risks to take

How will we come out in the end

It’s all in the hands of the universe my friend

 

By Bailey Thompson

Author's Note: This poem was inspired by the below picture. I found it and it immediately came to me as I thought the picture represented the transformation from a child to a teenager, where crayons are replaced with drugs... etc. I plan on doing more with this picture, however this is a start.

This picture was done by Brad Forsyth. For more information about him, or to view even more of his amazing work, please visit www.bradforsyth.com