I was...

I was…

a child.

a lonely child.

a neglected child.

an emotionally neglected child.

a creative child.

alone with my record player.

alone with my stuffed animals.

not invited to parties or sleepovers.

left out without explanation.

not acknowledged.

in the background.

in the shadows.

in the darkness.

painfully shy, but strong.

unrecognized for my talent, by the most important people.

just as talented as your students.

shown if less than.

shown to settle.

taught to put up with negativity.

far from confident with myself.

always imagining the future.

hoping for happiness.

following my dreams.

starting the next chapter.

exploring my talents.

focusing on my music.

being exposed to reality.

going to college.

excited to be an adult.

becoming independent.

working part time.

figuring out who I wanted to be.

figuring out who I wanted in my life.

meeting new people.

seeing how people really are.

introduced to my future.

immediately brought down.

not aware of it. taught to count my confidence. intimidated.

naive to many things.

needing attention.

accepting advances.

distorting my ideas of love.

smarter than that.

ignoring read flags.

not told to avoid him.

mistaking attention for caring.

not willing to give up right away.

not seeing who he actually was. not told the truth about his past.

already scared.

made to believe others were wrong.

made to believe he was wrong.

told that this is normal.