Just The Average, Typical … (Girl? / Boy?)

I’m a girl.
Maybe I do enjoy hearing,
“I love you” fall from his lips,
And so what if I can never get enough,
Giggles,
Silly moments?
And, yes, I do wear make-up,
But it doesn’t take me six hours to apply.
And maybe, just maybe,
I love it when he tickles me,
Holds my hand,
Grabs my waist,
And gives me bear hugs.
And, ok, I’ll admit it,
I could spend the whole day at the mall.

But I’m a boy.
I hate pink.
You will never, ever find me wearing it.
I would pick worn-in jeans over miniskirts,
Last years’ sneakers over 3 inch heels, any day.
Given the choice:
Cheerleading or football?
You’ll find me on the gridiron,
Sprinting past the 15-yard-line,
Scoring the winning touchdown.
And contrary to popular belief,
I’m not anorexic.
I don’t always order salad.
I can eat.
Me and emotions don’t get along,
We try to avoid each other.
I HATE to cry.
Ignoring it is easier than talking about it.

I’m really a girl,
But deep down inside,
I’m kind of a boy too.
And maybe one day,
The world will be ready to accept all of me.

Start of English Memior

I grew up hearing the words “Good night. I love you. See you in the morning,” from my mom every night. On Saturdays and Sundays, it was my dad tucking us in. No, it’s probably not what you’re thinking. They weren’t divorced. Quite the opposite, in fact. They were, and still are, happily married despite the rising divorce rate. My dad worked nights, so it was my mom telling us every night to go brush my teeth, it was time for bed. My mom made dinner every night, and we all sat down together to eat. On Sundays she made a big meal: meat, potatoes, vegetables. We didn’t ask any questions. That was just the way it was. Since we didn’t invest in a television until I was nine, we often occupied lazy Saturday nights with family board games. Sorry, Uno, Golf. We were all pros at them.
“Mom, that’s not fair. She took my red card. Tell her to give it back.” Stamping feet, pouting faces, and thrown cards punctuated each complaint.
“Well, honey, she doesn’t know any better. She’s only three.”
I had you typical, average family. At least to me it was. In my nine year old brain, I never noticed that most kids had one or two brothers and sisters, not three sisters and one brother. It was ok with me. Big families meant we always had someone to play with, someone was always up to entertaining. I was used to sharing a bedroom and having my clothes stolen from my drawers. I didn’t say I liked it.
“Mom! Tell Rachel next time she wants to read one of my books to ASK,” I shouted up the stairs into the kitchen, where my mom was making brownies.
“Honey, learn to live with it. You’ve got nine more years of this,” she would always shout back, annoying me even more.
We would get up faithfully every Sunday at 7:30 to make the one hour trek to Clifton for church. No liked getting up early for church, but, once again, that was something that we never questioned. Of course, there were complaints every week. The same incessant ones. “Dad, I don’t want to get up. I’m tired.” And there were the magical 1 hour stomach aches. “Dad, I can’t go to church. My stomach hurts.” And if by chance he gave in, our stomach bug would magically disappear an hour later, just in time eat warm, sticky cinnamon buns.
But even though we had a content family, there was still something missing. It was kind of like when mom throws out one of your shirts. You know that something is missing; you just can’t seem to figure it out.

in-class-free-write

if i could send a message

to every ten-year-old

boy,

girl,

i would tell them

that they are perfect as they are.

dont change for anyone.

i would tell them

to never give up,

to always have dreams.

i would tell them

that love, trust, honesty, loyalty:

they are a universal concept.

men,

women,

they all understand.

i would tell them the we have all wished on stars,

prayed away mistakes,

and fought our own wars.

i would tell them

dolls or trucks,

dress-up or war,

it really doesnt matter,

as long as we played.

but most of all,

i would tell them

that in the end

were really not all the different.