I would accept

a bright invitation

to unwind in honey gold sunsets on brick rooftops,

reach for the casted shadows with my rosy cushions-

not worrying

About what ‘worry’ is

or how long I can linger amongst the clouds without

submerging into water. But whatever, dancing

in pouring rain,

running down city streets

is better when I’m not tamed, when AM and PM

can’t break apart my adventures. And when I final-

ly choose to lie

and rest in flowerpots,

all of my dreams will be separated from soc-

iety, tranquil and laid back like my feline spine as

I sleep on free-

dom. And I wake up with-

out anguish, my whiskers enjoying the crisp air of

uncertainty. I’ll jump over the trenches of de-

pression and anx-

iety and I don’t

start again because life may have the same predestin-

ation but every sunrise is different when you aren’t

tethered by the

ropes of expectation.

I won’t confine myself to white walls and closed windows,

drinking from the same cup as a trapped soul and eating

the same stale food.

I can’t build character

in safety. If I fall, I’m sure to land on my feet.

I wish I had that same assurance now. Maybe a

Letter or an

Invitation, bright and

promising that my next existence is as blissful

as a cat’s. Nine lives stroked with gilded rays of clari-

ty or maybe

just one with a promis-

ing future and reality. So, I sit on brick

rooftops, basking in the golden sun, wishing for more.

Haven Simmons

Age 17, Grade 11

Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts

Parkland School District