Message in a bottle?
I found one yesterday.
I had to grab it quickly
So it didn't float away.
As I stared into it
I wondered what I'd find.
Many possibilities were
Running through my mind.
Maybe an old pirate king
Left on some distant isle
Had vented all his anger
And the message would be vile.
Or some sad, lonely princess
In a tower by the sea,
Held captive by an evil curse
Was begging to be free.
Could it be a soldier
Fighting in a distant land
Writing of the horrors in
A shaking, bloody hand.
Perhaps a pretty young girl, with
A new and secret beau,
Eloping with her true love
Wanted someone else to know.
I cut away the wax seal
And pulled the paper out.
A hint of recognition and,
Oh yes, there was no doubt.
The date upon the top line
Read ONE NINE SEVEN THREE.
I smiled as I remembered
The writer had been me.
"I am a girl of nine years, and
A child I wish to stay.
But it can't be forever and
I must grow up one day.
I look to the horizon and
My eyes fill up with tears.
The future is so scary and
My head is full of fears.
What if I can't do it?
What if I can't cope?
What if I can't look after me?
What if I have no hope? "
Remembering those fears I take
A pen and start to write
A note my younger self won't read
But somewhere some child might.
"Don't fear that you will grow up.
It is really not so bad.
Enjoy the things you learn and
Don't waste time being sad.
You'll learn to do it slowly.
The learning never ends.
You'll make mistakes, as I did
But you'll learn to make amends."
I pushed it in the bottle and
I reapplied the seal.
I hoped a child would find it and
Some comfort they would feel.
A message in a bottle?
I sent one yesterday.
I put it in the waves and then
I watched it float away.