2 - Kayla R - I am From

I am From   

I am from late nights in princess gowns,

I am from watching American Idol on the thick, old, sit-on-the-floor TV.

I am from the cultural foods, all made with love.

I am from the drama of telenovelas, constantly playing in the background.

I am from at-home concerts in my wrangled Hannah Montana wig.

I am from the overbearing love of grandparents.

I am from screaming “1 2 3 GO”, even when it was prohibited.

I am from the begs and cries to play a little longer before bedtime.

I am from the nicknames used when both loved and mad.

I am from the power of “I love yous”, 

That seemed to appear less and less as the days went by.

I am from the love of family and friends, 

That was around every weekend in the shapes of barbecues and football. 

I am from begging to sleep over with my cousins.

I am from hiding from my parents once 10 PM hit on a Sunday night.

I am from watching my cousin grow older, 

Yearning to be just like her.

I am from church bells,

Which quite too soon turned to school bells

I am from matching outfits and headbands,

To caring too much about the way I looked for others 

I am from the innocence of childhood,

To the hard facts of the world I had to face once middle school hit. 

I am from the slow falling apart of my parent’s marriage.

I am from the screams, the cries, the laughs, and all of the love.

I am from packing a bag every week,

Even after feeling like it had just unpacked itself a day ago.

I am from the games of back and forth, 

To the changes of mood and terms to be on. 

I am from the different sounds of my days.

I am from the Reggaeton, the Country, and the old Rap.

I am from the concerts,

That I seemed to fall asleep at everytime, 

Yet continue to wake up in my bed each time. 

I am from the constant family trips, 

Whose importance I never understood until I grew older.

I am from the family dinners,

Where everyone sat at the table, 

But the seats soon started to empty. 

I am from the changes I endured within relationships. 

I am from the love and hate I teetered on with my father. 

I am from the heartbreak of my best furry friend, 

Whose days were cut much too short. 

I am from the changes of being sociable, 

To the fear of being in the same room with people I hadn’t seen in months. 

I am from the isolation, 

That I had never thought would end. 

  WORD COUNT - 450