A letter to the Universe
Dear skies of promise,
Did you hear about the birds who sing melancholic harmonies in the trees? What about the fierce vixen foxes who hunt for food at dawn? What a shame I cannot reach for the universe and whisper the worries that invade my mind to her. My body is powerful, they say. My mind is a vessel to all things on Earth, they preach. I wish I were a ladybug being seen as a fragile sign of good luck to humans. Instead, they torment each other in fear of being different and being perceived. A shame — indeed it is— to be living in such a sickening worldly apocalypse. Why is it that when one sings like the birds or is fierce like the foxes, they are then abducted and taken to a forbidden land. They are shut down and stripped of passion and life right before our eyes. That is when the world stops spinning and the fireflies hide away from the chaos. Universe, why must it be this way? The wind picks up its chilling speeds and whirls my hair into a billion knots when the Universe takes a day off. The uncontrollable fear of using my voice as a weapon against those who dare to be an anchor takes over my body. Now I feel as though my body is nothing like a vessel, but a weak limb. I cannot bring myself to lift a finger anymore. Now, tell me about the moon who sits there and acts as a light to the deep pit beyond us. I shall lift my head up and look to it in pride. Maybe then I am a small ladybug who the moon can love. Maybe, they say, in another life.
Yours boldly,
The ladybug on the moon
Author’s Note:
I’ve always felt that my opinions and differences were never valued as someone who spends time keeping my voice to myself. Looking at the world around me when there’s nobody else, I look to nature as a guide of life. I wrote this because I want there to be representation of young teens and pre-teens who are looking for themselves with little to no support surrounding them. I may be young, but I want this letter to be a symbol of hope for future me and past me.
Charlie Lockwood | 13 | Tustin, CA
