Two Truths

I have found two things to be true in my life.

Number 1: People like to tell me things.

Number 2: I tend to be wrong… a lot.

I had a teacher tell me once that I was bright,

That I could understand things past the comprehension of others,

That I was on the fast track for a successful future –

I used to think that was true.

I was wrong…

it’s easy to be smart when you’re in a room full of idiots.

My mother tells me that I remind her of herself when she was my age,

That she was young and beautiful,

That she had style and spunk,

That our beings are more alike than not –

I used to be embarrassed of the similarities between us.

I was wrong…

my mother is a strong woman.

There was this boy who told me that I was beautiful,

Who told me he saw his whole world in my eyes,

Who told me that he loved me… that he loved me for me –

I used to think that wasn’t true.

I was wrong…

not everyone looks at me the way I do.

A man once told me he saw the ghost of my tears in my soul,

That he saw a knife wedged into my heart,

That he heard the deafening scream of my mind –

I used to think he was crazy.

I was wrong…

because I hear them now too.