PostPoems Be Artistic. Be Creative. Be Inspired!

When the long-retired English teacher sees a wildflower growing on its own

she lingers there a while 

as the memory of a student visits and brings with it…a smile.

She remembers standing in front of her class…announcing,

“I give this same assignment every year…

please write what you want to be when you grow up…

and remember…there are no wrong answers here!”

There answers were as predictable as children’s answers usually are:

fireman, policeman, doctor…super-hero…movie star.

She read each one with interest as their grammar she corrected…

until she came across one paper with an answer…unexpected.

It was written by the shyest student in her class…

who didn’t want fame or fortune…or a super power…

‘When I grow up,’ her wish was simply, 

‘I want to be a wild flower!”

‘Because bringing a little beauty to the world is a wildflower’s livelihood 

and I want to bloom in all the places no one ever thought I would.’

‘You already bring beauty to my world!’ The teacher remembers writing.

‘and I know you’ll find a way…to share your beauty wherever you go!’

then she gave her paper an ‘A’.

This is why she lingers a while when she sees a single wildflower….

to remember the shyest student she ever had…

with the greatest superpower.