I’d like to share my very first poem. I composed this when I was still 12 – first year high school at ICC-La Salle.
Do Love
Do not change your love
That fly like a dove
It’s a thing you can keep
That many people peep
Everybody knows
Everybody shows
Loving forever
Can’t change to never
Set it free
And go to a tree
Wish for something
And you can get everything
Save it for me
A happy as you be
I care for you
Because I love you
– Mary Rosalie T. Olandesca (September 26, 1995)
Does the poem make sense? Well, this was just written by a tweener. Now, what is a tweener? This is a new word in this new generation that refers to a person in between ages 10-12. That’s derived from the word between. Thus exists the word tween or tweener – not a kid anymore but still not yet a teen-ager.
In this stage of life, various confusions arise. Some want to stay as kids but some are so excited that they start to act as grown-ups. Some thinks they are not good-looking but some are so confident with themselves. Identity crisis also arises – am I a boy or a girl? These are only a few of the issues that tweeners are facing.
As for my being a tweener, I could remember that I wanted to remain as a kid. I didn’t want to grow up yet. I fought it for a while but I couldn’t help it. My hormones opted me to grow! I just suddenly disliked playing with my Barbie dolls, lost interest in watching Cartoon Network, and I didn’t have an appetite for Lipps anymore.
On the other hand, new interests sprang up like reading Sweet Valley pocketbooks, collecting hair clips and headbands, hanging out with my girl friends and started talking about boys! Interests on boys surprisingly came and I just suddenly took notice of my classmate who was my then neighborhood playmate. It’s so funny thinking about it now! But by that time, he had became my world. And this poem is all so written because of him.
So, now let’s go back to my question earlier. “Does the poem make sense?” Of course the answer is “yes”! Because at the time of writing, the feeling was so real. May it be written by a tweener or a teen-ager or an adult, all feelings are real! It just depends on our level of maturity. I may laugh about it now, but still that was what I felt before and it was all so real!
And to all tweeners out there, enjoy this phase of your life for this only comes once and will never come back! Express whatever you feel and whatever you want! You are entitled of that yourself! And take note, just be happy!:-)