It feels like yesterday,

but it is a lifetime ago.

I grew, with the fresh, green leaves,

mothered by the sun as the days dragged on.

I kept my pain in a parcel beneath my bed,

hearing her howl when we were alone,

until her screams became the Song that sent me to sleep.

I slept,

as if my life depended on it,

because it was the only place that I felt free,

but now,

hibernation is almost over.

Everyone else is just getting started,

but I have so much to do,

and nothing left to dream about.

My friends, once fresh, are falling to the ground,

crunching underneath my shoes,

and I mourn them,

singing that same song that always finds me, when I’m alone.