i keep the time
from slipping
by pouring it away.
pouring it into the kitchen sink
where it sluices
between coffee grinds and egg shells
it’s all rushing away anyways
i am four five seven eight eleven thirteen sixteen sixteen sixteen
a rush of birthday candles
‘what do you want to be’, they asked
and i had no answers for them
‘an artist?’
i am a child
for whom time is swirling too fast
and my mind is whirring too slow.
so i keep the time from slipping
by pouring it away.
because maybe if i push it away
it’ll come back to me
like everything i’ve never found.
Lauren is a senior at Avon Grove High School. In addition to writing, she enjoys piano, violin, and drawing.