Espied that girl in navy blue
walked alone on campus
in our middle school
She evaded classmates
as a lone wolf
shied away from its pack
Her inscrutable eyes
belied secrets
tight lips leaked no words
Still chatter buzzed behind her back
Her peers were young and
innocent
with insatiable curiosity and
voracious appetite
for gossips
Hustling and bustling
they spread words
Rumors snowballing
turned her family secret
into a taboo scandal
in that austere age
over a half century ago
A stigma was attached to her
With rage she fought back
It begat punition from our teacher
thrashing her palms with a stick
The whipping daunted teen onlookers
Yet she did not blink nor withdraw hands
Must be the flesh pain numbed her heartache
Those School Days
Long ago were
those school days
Strung up they form a pearl lace
sparkles in my memory
Each bead unfurls a story
bitter or sweet, so many
Pertained to that age
laughter was genuinely carefree
Friends shared secrets
swore not to tell
Forgot what they were
Still feel the burning on my face
where it was slapped by the teacher
for the sake of not betraying
Those youthful days I had
a truckload of dreams
big and wild
mostly idealistic or unrealistic
Dare to own them
for being naive
Goals were never too high
with belief future was unlimited
Not afraid of falling
It was easy to bounce back
Now mellowed
Most dreams evanesced
Many ambitions turned ashes
Friendship dissipated
Memory is fading
Before it’s too late
I shall eulogize those bygone days
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