Young Writers Project is a creative, online community of teen writers and visual artists that started in Burlington in 2006. Each week, VTDigger publishes the writing and art of young Vermonters who post their work on youngwritersproject.org, a free, interactive website for youth, ages 13-19. To find out more, please go to youngwritersproject.org or contact Executive Director Susan Reid at sreid@youngwritersproject.org; (802) 324-9538.
Tranquility
Elona McNeil, 13, Shelburne
My funny little friend
appearing at my door,
day in and day out,
to say hello to me.
So intelligent
yet so silly,
chasing after fallen leaves and blades of grass.
Lying on the doormat
waiting for me to appear,
and sometimes,
when I do show up,
you stay sprawled right in front of the door,
unwilling to move,
saying,
Go around me –
you have other doors,
because you’re so comfortable.
The white fur on your stomach exposed as you roll around,
hooking your claws in the mat,
scratching,
pulling,
tugging,
brushing up against me,
wandering around the porch,
rubbing up against the box of chalk…
guarding our front porch
against what?
Only you really know,
pacing and nuzzling,
sitting and staring,
claiming this place as your own,
claiming me as your own.
You are my equal.
Sometimes I don’t understand you,
but most times
I just feel contentment and tranquility,
living in the moment, maybe,
having moved on from the past
and not having to worry about the future,
as the dappled sunlight between the leaves shines on your face,
as you close your eyes…
You never really sleep;
you’re just resting,
basking in the sunlight,
sleepy and calm after an exhausting day.
You know how to live –
can you teach the rest of us?
