It’s tough to be “you”
when everyone around you is “them”—

you’re different—
you’d gladly walk in public wearing pajamas
you throw salt over your shoulder for luck
you are moved to do the queerest things
you don’t like trick-or-treating
you speak to people who (thankfully) can’t hear you.

Do the people at school know that?
Not most of them-that kind of thing,
it’s the easiest way to be labelled “weird.”
It shouldn’t bother you, but
it does.
You’re shy in school
You blush too easily
You’re always afraid of saying the wrong thing.
Instead, you stay quiet.
Maybe people wonder why-
but would they listen to what you said
if they thought it sounded bizarre?
Probably not.
Best to stay quiet.
Someday, you’ll come out of your shell
and show the world who you are.
You’ll wear your PJ’s, you’ll quote, you’ll be “you.”
Right now it’s tough,
but, darling, you’ll learn to appreciate the “You” that’s inside.
Even if few others do.
Be yourself, darling—
everyone else is already taken.