10 Years Ago

When I look at myself
in the mirror, I see an
18-year-old teen who 
grew up too young.

10 years before 18,
I was an 8-year-old 
girl living off food
stamps and strangers.

10 years before 8,
my mom was 27
and my brother
was born.

10 years before 27,
my mom was 17
and attending a
tailoring school
her uncle had paid.

10 years before 17,
my mom was 7 and
had her first comm-
union. 6 years later,
she would lose 
an arm.

50 years later,
I am 28 years old,
and when I look
in the mirror,
I'm still 18 years.

It's been 10 years
since then,
nothing has changed,
not for the better,
not for the worse.
10 years of continuous
time loop and I stay
stranded in my thoughts.
My brother left,
My sisters are still kids,
my parents needing help,
I stay stranded along 
the way. 

Has God left me since then?
I wish I knew his thoughts,
I wish I knew his plans,
I wish I knew what comes
after this life if at all 
I make it.

Sometimes I wonder
if I followed a different 
path back then,
would 10 years ago
made a difference?
Copyright © | Year Posted 2026

Poem

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Graham Avatar
June 28, 2026 at 8:45 AM
Powerful!
Morales Avatar
June 29, 2026 at 12:07 PM
Thank you!
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