She Was Different

She Was Different

Girl Loner began to notice
She was different.
When faced with darkness
She went outside, coatless and silent,
And climbed the roof of the shed
In the lower backyard
To lay down and look up:
The frontier of each oak tree crown
Touching the border of the next,
Curving lines of light
Changing form with the breeze,
A dancing border,
A message to the Girl:
You are ours.
You are one of us.
You will push through the hard earth,
Helping to warm it to life
Through the pulsing cells of your body.
You will rise up,
Like us. You will learn to dance
And, like us, wear a crown.
Like us
Even in the dark.
Even in the dark,
You will find us.

Author: Sandy Lee Carlson

Photo: Janko Ferlič on Unsplash