Little Red
I made you when I was in school;
I was young and naïve, had a lot to learn.
You were my Red pen mark,
A correction, on a paper I’d rushed through.
Double toil, double trouble,
Sleepless nights, swamped days.
“Damn you,” I cried;
I saw dark circles in the mirror and not a friend.
I failed and
I was held back --
I hadn’t yet learned
Through the weeks you and I muddled,
Bogged down, hurled through time.
“Damn you,” I laughed
at all the first steps you taught me.
I’m back now
And the assignments are the same as before.
I’m studying now
And I carry with me all the lessons I learned then.
I’m older and wiser now
And I’m feeling younger and stupider than ever.
I’m really on my way now
And I’ve got such a long way to go.
It doesn’t matter what blunders I’ll ever make --
Little Red, you’re still my favorite mistake.
- April 2005 (photo by Tate Tullier)
