When did I realize I was not a kid anymore?

It wasn’t when I stopped begging my mom for candy at the store.

Not when I stopped looking forward to watching a Saturday morning cartoon.

And not when I stopped thinking the car was being chased by the moon.

It wasn’t when I stopped going outside to play.

I can’t pinpoint exactly when it happened, I didn’t just wake up one day

To realize I was not a child any longer

It wasn’t like all of a sudden I felt older and stronger

In fact, I think I realized when I started to feel more weak

When I realized that words were more than just speak

When people started to say things that hurt more than a punch to the gut

When words started beginning to sting just like lemon in a cut

I realized I was no longer a kid anymore

When I sat with my head in my hands on the floor

Thinking about how I didn’t know what my future would hold

Worried about all the things about college I was told

I was no longer a kid when my biggest worry was choice of my flavor of ice cream

And now it was whether or not I would get to live my dream

When playing catch turned to playing catch up on the work I had to do

And wondering why this was something I had to go through

I stopped being a kid when hugs and kisses for my mom and dad

Turned to screaming matches that made me more sad than mad

My childhood was over when I began real life

When relationships I always knew began to go through strife

But more than all of this combined

I stopped being a kid when I realized for every problem, a solution I could find

My childhood was over when I realized I controlled my destiny

With hardwork and the right attitude, I could decide what happened to me

I could not change the things that were thrown my way

I could change how I allowed them to affect my day

I became an adult when I learned to handle things with stride

To look forward, and to handle myself with pride

To be humble and kind

But to always speak my mind

There is no answer to this question as far as I can see

I stopped being a kid when I started becoming me