Being a Girl

By Emery R.

Being a girl is a multitude of things

A pool of adjectives swimming in the catch-all bowl on your counter

Beautiful, magical, fun, freeing, special, lovely

Just floating around like the loose change you find in the bottom of your pocket

There are those moments where something great happens

And you walk around for days feeling invincible

Nothing can touch you because you are glowing from the inside out

And it shows on your bright face and in the swing of your limbs as you stride on air

Sometimes sobering events occur

And you walk around feeling trod upon by dozens of feet

You are down for the count, listless, not into whatever it is

And it shows on your grim face and in the slump of shoulders in your lackadaisical walk

Being a girl is talking about forever with your friends

And saying "never" to the idea of growing apart

Going to the pool, the bookstore, "your place" where only you go

To share and love laughs and talks and general company

It is liking pink or rejecting it or just plain being okay with it

Until you realize it doesn't matter what the TV shows or how many times "girly" is said

It is giving Barbie a new outfit or dissecting her for the camera inside of plastic flesh

That you could or couldn't care about, it's your choice

Being a girl is having the power to change things

It means you have influence and impact

Courage, confidence, and character running in your blood

And that you can use them to make the world a little kinder, brighter, warmer

"Girl" should never be a demeaning word

Used to make you feel inadequate

Because being a girl is a magnificent, spectacular, EXTRAORDINARY thing

And you are surrounded by astonishing possibility