Eighteen

Esme Emerson

Compositor: Esme Emerson

Eighteen
Someone like me
She’s carried it all
Yet she’s not running for the hills

Sat by me
Legs crossed under the night sky
No warning
I didn’t think that I’d cry
I still remember
Your roll-neck sweater
Every word every letter said

She said
So
You can let it go now
You can take your walls down
Don’t bottle up when you’re with me

Just know that
You can let it show and
You’re not on your own now
Take a breath and count to three

Hold my heart between your hands
And never let go of me
Am I ready to get up this time?
Standing on my own feet
I can’t help it if I fall again
Places I’ve never been
To be vulnerable feels dangerous now
Is it selfish that I just want to be seen?

Oh, her words make me whole
When facing a world where I am
Small again
Crushed under the heap
But she makes smile
And those words are
The memories that I'll keep

So
You can let it go now
You can take your walls down
It’s okay now you’re with me