Recently I was blessed by hearing a poem my fourteen-year-old niece wrote for a class at school. I was quite impressed and asked her if I could share it. It is a New Years resolution that resonates deeply with me as I have been making attempts to change my lifestyle. I value being present with people and want that to be reflected in the way I live and interact with others. Her poem really struck me. She is desiring to be present and content in the midst of whatever life brings. She is authentically enjoying the world around her in which God has made and blessed her with. That is exactly the thing I also long for. I believe her poem says it all.

 

This Year/Last Year

Written by: Trinity Kem

Last year I watched,

The news channel flashing. 

All of the loss and doubt.

What new diseases are catching.

Time is running out.

This year I will watch,

The living of the forest.

Planting to give life to seeds.

Echoing harmoniously in chorus.

Loss and sadness dampened, by crunching of fall leaves.

Last year I decided,

One more movie from the glowing screen.

One more song, the radio catching me in it’s jaws.

My laptop beaconed with it’s glossy sheen.

Will I ever escape instagram’s endlessly scratching paws?

This year I will decide,

To take my computer and turn it off.

Listen to the songs of the birds instead.

Unplug my headphones until it’s battery dies with a cough.

Go outside and wait until my phone is dead.

Last year I carried,

The burden of homework and stress.

An outcast in middle school.

On my shoulders, weighed down it would press.

The whole world was throwing me into it’s pool.

This year I will carry,

Most of the same things, or even more.

Instead I’m going to listen to the birds as they sing.

I will trade my stress for a backpack to explore.

This year I will try to enjoy everything.