We are assigned to write a piece of literature based on the topic of 'When I was Young'. A lot of people decided to do an anecdote talking about a moment in their childhood. I was tired of essays and stories so I decided to do a poem, which is kind of unusual for me considering I've never done a poem in my life. I have this thing where when I write a poem-if I ever write one-I have to have it rhyme. Call it OCD or whatever, but it's how I do things. It took me a while to come up with an idea, but eventually I realized that whenever I think of 'young', I thought of time…which leads me to making each month of a year a theme to each stanza of my poem. Enjoy!

Year One

When I was young, my past was small

I had no concern for time at all

But as I grew, my past accrued

Leaving memories all worn through

So please excuse, as I tie loose ends

Trying to travel between the bends

Heavy breathing, these exhausted lungs

Counting the days, back when I was young

First is January, which is dear

With friends and family, always near

Crowded together, packed up tight

All this for just one special night

Then time comes and they all cheer,

"Happy New Year" for all ears

Snow flakes lifting, flakes of white

Cupids' blessings, hearts in flight

Chocolates and cards, as hugs caress

Always romantic, always the best

Perfect for weddings, a time to decree

Fourteen's the day that you ask for me

March has arrived, now time to sing

Circle of spring comes marching in

Take a risk, and seize a chance

Have adventure and have a dance

Getting late now, night in day

So be my dancer, dance you may

The dying of grass, begging and arched

Trees so thirsty, leaves so parched

Then comes April, and then her shower

Coming through rain, pouring louder

But don't forget, now don't you drown

Into the water, gravity bound

The sun is shinning, as Earth gives life

Now's the time, for birds in flight

May is busy, giving bloom

And just like that, life resumes

Seems like an oath, an oath of forever,

But forever must leave, returning whenever

The birds of June has long since died

A mourning tune, the empty sky

Alone with the beat, a beat so strife

A beat of pulsing, a beat of life

I should say this in a sweeter tone

But only till time leaves me alone

Then there's July, just lingering by

The Phantom of Earth, a living lie

Creeping down an endless road

Wondering where this path will go

Hard to persist life's heavy load

The sands of time it can not hold

Trying to turn a fresh new page

Only learning to loath and hate

And though it fought its very hardest

Autumn must win over summer August

Summer has come, gone, then passed

Childhood innocence can never last

So long the days of watching the stars

So long the days of knowing who we are

Will you, September, ring the bells again

Pick up where spring's song began?

Or have you been deafened by your silence

Lost, yet to be found, needing guidance?

Holding on to my late-teens

Wearing masks on Halloween,

Autumn's snowflakes, these fallen leaves

Losing color, these stealing thieves

But this short night is almost over,

Beginning the ending of October

Heart grows colder, cold as ice

Asking why this should suffice

Seconds only time can make

Lock us up, incarcerate

As the dying embers slowly glow

November comes, and November goes

Memories piling high and wide

Landing on ice, then slipping by

Lemories to share, memories to hide

Some bring smiles, others I cry

Or was it Christmas, that made me sad?

I guess just time, 'cause it's what I had

Too much worry, missing out

Never knowing what life's about

Time to give and time to take

Time to lose all at stake

Oh December, oh December,

Losing you, I'll always remember

Through carelessness then on to reason

Time can only go through the seasons

Not this year, or even tomorrow

Time is not something we can borrow

Bittersweet this endless thought

That who I was, I now am not

Through regrets, time served me well

For this simple truth is mine to tell

And here we are, back to year one

Back to the years, back when I was young