Hello

A Poem by jessie

Sometimes I want to go back in time
Back to that sunny summer day in mid-July
To that classroom full of planets in early September
Just a little while later
And I want to give ten-year-old Jessie a pat on the shoulder
And say: "Look at that girl over there - have you met her?

A few years from now, on a Monday in October
You'll find yourself walking home from school with your head filled with her laughter
And you'll find her in every love song and every poem
And in the way the sun glistens on the trees on your way to school the next morning

A few years from now you'll look at her
At the poorly braided daisies in her freshly cut hair
And you'll wonder how before that Monday
You weren't in love with her

A few years from now, you and her will be friends
And she'll look at you and manage to make sense
Of just so much as a quick glance she wasn't supposed to see
And of your silly, thirteen-year-old misery

And she'll help you, when you're at your worst
And you'll learn that a small question, a pocketful of concern
Can make all the difference in the world
And every butterfly you will draw will carry her name
And you'll realise later that you've loved her back then
Even though in another year's time, that, too, will have changed

And she won't love you back, of course, not like that
But you will find that her hand on your shoulder
As you stand by the street
Ingrains in your skin an ache that's almost consoling, and bittersweet
And you'll carry it home when you turn around and leave

And you'll still want to go back in time
Back to the days when you were falling asleep at night
And the radiance of her smile was the last thing on your mind
Or back to the days before the day in October
Back to when all of that was just around the corner
Or back to when your feelings weren't messed up and you just knew you loved her

And all the while she'll make you smile
She'll refuse to let go of you, and let you sit by her side.
And your heart will fluctuate from time to time
Like you're a shore exposed to her tides
And you'll find that you still love her between the sounds of softly tinkling strings - or that's what you think
And you'll think the same on the night bus back home
That you do love her - you do and you don't

And here's what you'll learn: You don't get over people easily
Sometimes you never do
Because that's not the point of letting go

And all of that is years away now
In the meantime - I guess you could get up. Say hello.