The Joys of 2nd Puberty

The Joys of 2^nd Puberty

 

The first round is terrible for everyone,

Though with just a pinch of extra horror thrown in

For those in my tribe.

Embarrassed teenagers running rampant,

Awkwardly forcing their newly-shaped feet

Into shoes that aren’t growing fast enough.

But in the end,

They all fall into place,

Except my tribe.

We lose the first round.

 

But 2^nd puberty…

It’s simply fantastic.

Things grow

And things recede,

But this time the twisting shame of teenage-hood

Has been subtracted from the equation.

Now each stray, uneven hair,

Each crack of the voice,

Each morning surprise,

Each inch gained here

And inch lost there

Can be thoroughly enjoyed;

Each a small victory dance.

 

During 2^nd puberty,

There’s no need to blush and writhe in awkward comments;

There’s no parents around.

We’ve flown far away

And we earn our own keep.

There’s no need to stew in yesterday’s schoolyard blunder;

There’s no classmates around.

We’ve been branded with age

And we’ve earned our self-assured stride.

 

We chose to submit to 2^nd puberty,

My tribe and me,

We chose to give nature a helping hand,

When our chromosomes betrayed us

And tried to set us up for a lifetime

Of writhing in awkward comments

And jumping out of our skin.

But nature was no match

For 2^nd puberty.