Blue Mountain Arts Poetry Contest

18 Things I've Learned at 18
by Jamie Gordon

THirty-Second Contest
Honorable Mention

One. 
Don’t be afraid to take up space 
You are as vast as the ocean, and the world is your coffee cup 
Spill yourself over the edges onto the porcelain saucer 
Claim yourself worthy of expansion 
If you shrink yourself 
to the size of a sugar cube 
You will dissolve like one as well. 

Two. 
Your body is the only thing you have in this life 
It has been with you this entire time 
A best friend 
even though at times it seems like your enemy 
This body is your vehicle to move through life 
Take care of it, respect it, care for it 
Every cell in your body is working 
Against everything rotten the world has to offer 
just to protect you. 

Three. 
People will try to stomp out your light 
Like pinching out the flickering flame of a matchstick 
Don’t let anyone extinguish you 
You have a spark in your heart 
That lights up the hollow of your ribcage 
Cough out the smoke and allow the world to smell your passion. 

Four. 
If you change yourself 
For a significant other 
You aren’t a slab of clay 
Ready to be molded into whatever 
He or she wants you to be 
The only thing you are doing is 
Breaking off a piece of yourself 
And offering it up for judgment 
Being vulnerable is scary, yes 
But wouldn’t you rather be yourself, unapologetically 
Than a cheap imitation? 

Five. 
Family isn’t just parents or siblings 
Family is the group of friends 
You are with at 1:45 a.m. 
Sitting in the trunk of a car looking at the stars 
And whispering about the secrets of the universe 
Family is the dog who licks the tears off your face when you’re sad 
Family is the friend who calls you just to say 
She hopes you’ve smiled today. 

Six. 
Don’t be afraid to be alone 
Go out to eat by yourself 
See a movie by yourself 
Go shopping by yourself 
Sometimes to truly grasp the idea of closeness 
You have to isolate yourself 
to know what it feels like to miss company 
Being alone with our minds is such an uncanny 
powerful 
beautiful thing 
Embrace it. 

Seven. 
Everything seems like the end of the world 
But trust me 
Just because you missed that homework assignment 
Doesn’t mean that the earth will fall out of orbit 
Take a breath, make some tea, and regroup. 

Eight. 
Virginity is a social construct! 
Your worth can’t be measured by how many people you’ve slept with 
And if that number is high 
so what. 

Nine. 
Don’t be passive 
Don’t be a ghost or wispy like a cicada shell in the wind 
When it comes to injustice 
If you’re turning a blind eye 
You are part of the problem. 

Ten. 
Get out of your head 
Sometimes we get so caught up in 
What we think other people think of us 
We don’t even know what we think of ourselves. 

Eleven. 
Likes don’t matter 
Retweets don’t matter 
Don’t measure your worth based on the likes and shares you receive 
We live in such a digital age where vying for likes 
Makes us 
dislike ourselves more. 

Twelve. 
Make friends with people unlike you. 
I have a group of friends 
Who range anywhere from 14 to 65 
The squad of moms I hang out with at the dog park 
They tell me I have my whole life ahead of me and I don’t even know it 
We barely know each other’s names 
but I could tell you that Buttercup’s owner suffers from a depressive disorder 
And she calls herself a beautiful disaster and then laughs about it 
She says it is okay to get help, and that you will never be alone. 

Thirteen. 
If he asks you to leave your friend’s house to come hang out 
Don’t. 

Fourteen. 
Be unforgivably passionate 
Whether it be for a band, a TV show, a cause 
Don’t apologize for using the entire capacity of your heart 
For something you care about 
Throw all of your energy into what you believe in. 

Fifteen. 
Even if you suck at something 
Keep doing it 
As long as something makes you happy 
It’s worth it. 

Sixteen. 
If he hides venom behind every 
Sweet thing that comes out of his mouth 
Don’t stay 
Listen to people when they say he is abusive 
Listen to the other women in your support group who say 
That you can leave this chapter of your life behind you 
And turn the page. 

Seventeen. 
The moment you stop 
Comparing your greatness 
To the greatness of others 
It is then that you will understand 
The meaning of contented happiness 
She is pretty like herself 
And you are pretty like yourself. 

Eighteen. 
Remember that humans are made partly of stardust 
We were destined for greatness from the start 
It’s pulsing through our veins 
The only thing that is standing in your way 
Is yourself. 
So, 
Yes, 
You are a storm 
glimmering with the intensity of life 
itself.