To my selfless parents:

Raised like a princess,

Constant support,

Late night talks,

Just lots of love.

The kindest parents

Who give me inspiration

To never stop spreading my wings.

To my sister who I will never admit is actually my best friend:

Always wanting what’s best for me

My second mother,

Late nights studying with together,

Lunch dates,

A taxi driver without pay,

Someone who acknowledges the littlest of things.

To my extended family:

Encouraging lectures I now appreciate,

My place to stay when I was too tired to drive home,

Holidays spent together,

Watching the younger cousins grow up.

Late nights at Grandma’s kitchen table,

Laughing over the old photo albums and stories being shared.

To my Grandma:

My best friend, my favorite story teller.

The only person I allow to smoke without giving them a lecture.

The woman who stays up later than I do sometimes just to finish an episode of a good show,

The woman who traveled and loves sharing her faith,

Someone I hope to be like one day.

I am so thankful for someone I love and who has always cared.

To the friends I grew up with:

Memories we have grades K-12,

College year one memories and hopefully beyond.

Friday nights at Roundtable,

Reminiscing on games we played in 3rd grade,

We’ve witnessed one another blossom into the most beautiful creatures,

Now out on our own missions in life.

To the first boy I cried over:

As silly as it is, I still blush when I see you.

You’ve grown up, still handsome as ever.

Those hazel eyes

And the simple gap between your teeth

Will always be what I admire

But, I am horrified that I thought one day I could have been your wife.

To my first job:

Ice cream,

Orders,

Cleaning,

Dogs,

Compliments,

Laughs and tears.

Customers who have changed my views,

And inspired me more than I could have ever imagined.

To me, not just a place of work.

More of a place that helped me learn more about myself,

The place that helped me truly appreciate little conversations

And thankful smiles from strangers.

To my first set of coworkers:

Drama queens,

That I love.

Some of my closest friends,

But when united,

We can truly be trouble-makers.

To the first person who boiled my skin:

Heartbreaker,

Rude and cruel

Somehow,

You do not make my blood boil anymore,

I do still think you deserved a shove.

To my faith:

Prayer and Worship songs,

I am so thankful to have Christ in my heart.

God is always there,

Even when I cannot feel his presence.

Through faith,

I have learned to unconditionally love. 

To my town:

Small and sweet,

"SP" on the mountain,

One high school,

Perfect weather,

4 freeway exits,

A loving community,

Home.

To the beach:

The waves crashing,

The sun shining.

Sitting on a rock,

Just admiring what is in front of me.

The warm sand between my toes,

Sun kissed skin,

A place that I go that makes my mind roam.

To the sport that stole my heart:

Tennis,

I love you so.

You taught me patience,

Gave me new passion,

“Second Team All-League”,

I miss having the time to play every day.

To the boy who stole my first kiss:

G,

The sweetheart I’ve been blessed enough to spend time with.

The talks, laughs and smiles shared with him are so new,

And so comfortable.

On a date we ended the night with a view over the city,

Our lips locked,

Giggles from me,

A sweet smile from him,

So simple and cliché.

To the university I attend:

CSUCI,          

Camarillo sunsets,

Small classes,

A dolphin as a mascot,

A voice that is heard,

A serene Campus,

A place full of friendly people,

And opportunities to succeed.

To the first teacher who got me into poetry:

11th grade AP English,

Terrible books,

Unnecessary vocabulary words being learned,

But poetry emerged.

Presentations of poems we wrote,

Free time to write,

She was not the best English teacher,

But poetry came easy and passionately,

Teaching how to write from the heart? No need.

To poetry:

The art I still try so hard at,

The one I ran out of time to pursue,

To some, it is an effortless stress relief

But to me,

It is complicated,

It is beautiful,

It is emotional.

To me, life is a poem.

Each person, place, and thing,

And each moment you live makes up the poem of your life.

After reading a good poem, I find hope.

That’s just what life is,

A poem,

A written adventure,

Your own story, full of hope.