Paddle Paddle

Against the Current

By: Erin 

I’ve always felt a little different from my peers

Not good or bad just like we operated in a different way

Renee a woman I admire very much would say

“Erin you’re canoeing up the river against the current…not with it.”

My first thought was “Wow, how do I fix it?”

But I understand now, it is not something you fix or change

This sucked at the time because I was tired of feeling strange

I like families and homes

Not crowds and parties

I like swimming in the water

Not tanning on the beach

I like art projects and fantasy books

Not shopping malls and magazines

And that was just the beginning

No one around me tried to make me feel different, strange or unusual

But I could not help but wonder “Why them and not me?”

Why do I not enjoy what is usual for people of my time?

Why am I not interested in hanging out with people my own age?

Is it that strange that I find it more fun to play with kids under the sun?

Or that I would choose to engage in conversation with those older and wiser?

This stuff used to really bother me

All I wanted was to feel like I was part of the “we”

But honestly I’m kind of over it now

Because now that I’m ok with me it’s easier for me to see others and allow

Them to be different and paddle their own stream

And let their light shine bright and beam

Plus the cool thing about paddling against the river is that as I have done it longer

My arms have become much stronger!