May Trip

When I got in my car and adjusted the rearview mirror,
I saw a child,

a child who wanted to roll in the grass, get ladybugs in her hair,
hold handfuls of dirt, squish berries beneath bare feet

a child who wanted to tell the world to stop screaming its
    insecurities in her ear,
stop snapping its fingertips in front of her face

I started my car and pulled onto the road

found myself in a school zone but refused to slow down,
drove in fifth with the windows down
blinded by
hair
wind
music
light

Then, the tickets:
speeding,
not signaling,
failure to yield

Slowing at a yellow light, I stopped at the red,
grabbed my unruly curls and put up my hair
snapped on my seatbelt, adjusted my mirror

The child was gone, and I sat in her place

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