perhaps innocence ends
the day one finally realizes
that life and love are not enough
that money matters more than mind
and that there is such a terrible thing
as “not good enough”

what a crushing realization
to be flung so quickly from
unadulterated childhood awe
into such a deep-reaching adulthood
too soon and much too quickly
discovering that, perhaps,
the world is not yours to conquer
but rather
you belong to this world
and they will do with you what they will