As A Child I Wanted To Be

My Life Is Not Packaged, Not Tidy. There Are Leftover Strands And Jagged Edges That Cut Even My Friends.

Each Generation Seems To Invent Its Own Reasons For War.

People Told Me To Give Up Trying To Be Special And Settle Down To A Regular Life. There Ain't Nothing Wrong With A Regular Life, And That's The Lord's Truth...but It Wasn't For Me, Because I Wanted To Be Something Special. I Knew How Easy It Was For A Dream To Die. I Seen That All Around Me. You Could Let It Die By Just Looking The Other Way.

I Think It's Difficult For Young People To Acknowledge Being Smart, To Knowledge Being A Reader. I See Kids Who Are Embarrassed To Read Books. They're Embarrassed To Have People See Them Doing It.

I Was Teased If I Brought My Books Home. I Would Take A Paper Bag To The Library And Put The Books In The Bag And Bring Them Home. Not That I Was That Concerned About Them Teasing Me - Because I Would Hit Them In A Heartbeat. But I Felt A Little Ashamed, Having Books.