(I Am) From
“Where are you from?”
I am from pages and ink,
The simple combination
That has me under lock and key.
From my bound writing notebooks
To unlock the real me.
I am from Peter and
Wendy,
Meg,
Jade,
Olive.
I am from a world of my own mind
With lots of twists and turns
That all untie,
Unwind.
I am from trying to get it all down on paper.
But never
Never
Succeeding.
I am from my other homes so far away,
La Crosse.
The woods,
Hogwarts,
Aunt Miki’s old home,
And of course the place
I call my own.
I am from NYC.
Full of expressive painted worlds,
Everyone rushing, whirling,
Dreaming.
Dreaming
A New-York-City-I-can-make-it-if-I-believe-it-Dream
That leaves bruises
When you don’t “believe” hard enough.
I am from my,
“Table of four”
Giraffe,
Bear,
Monkey,
And more
Hummingbird,
Owl,
Don’t forget me,
All the sweetest family.
I am from a league of girls,
All coming together as predators
To catch our prey,
The soccer ball.
I am from my voice,
Ringing clear and strong.
From basking in the
Ever present
Pounding
Pulsing
Beating
Running
Skipping
Dancing
Flying
Way
That music grabs my soul.
I am from citizenship to a different place
Tied to a different continent.
I am from the squiggly birthmark on my neck like a melted chocolate square,
From Brown University
And pink university because that’s my
Favorite color.
From “was it that building?” on 9/11
I am from my forever changing life
From 5th grade
To 6th grade
And beyond.
I am from a million different colorful languages:
Text
Call
Voicemail.
English
Family
Teacher
Friend.
I am from Yo-Yo. Not the toy,
The one who makes you feel spoiled
And always hugs you.
I am from the countless games my brother and I play.
like finding “thing” in the rainforest time and time again.
I am from the love embracing me where ever I go.
I am from being the color of sunshine.
I am from the fact, that I would write a million pages,
And they would still not be enough
To answer the simple question:
“Where are you from?”
Olive Wexler
Age 13, Grade 8
MS 245 The Computer School
Silver Key