How to Crush Wildflowers

Written By: Suzanne Wagner

I wrote this poem as a reminder to prioritize my physical, mental, and emotional health at all costs. The world might try to crush us but we must be stronger. We must keep being difficult.

I once knew a girl

With wildflowers in her hair.

She ran barefoot through lavender fields;

Lace whipped her ankles without care.

She climbed trees like a boy;

Told ghost stories in the moonlight.

A smirk bridged her dirty cheeks

Wrestling an unruly kite.

She was electric,

Lit the world on fire.

Till one day the world caught her

And instead of lifting her higher -

They broke her,

Trained her.

Put a saddle on her back.

Told her to follow the rules,

And shamed her for lack.

One by one

Those flowers fell from behind her ear,

Crumbled remnants of freedom

Replaced with pure fear.

Fear of misstepping,

Incurring judgmental wrath.

Her mind bubbled over

Not with pirate tales or bubble bath.

But with shoulds and musts,

Cobbled perfections imposed.

The pure strain and anxiety

Left her twisted,

Broken,

Disposed.

She became a hollow shell

Not feeling or believing.

Talking never helped -

Nor the pills quite relieving.

One glance in the mirror

Showed every edge of her pain.

She saw lavender in flashes

Blurred behind heavy rain.

I think of her often

When the world bares its teeth.

The last time I saw her?

A lonely grave with no wreath.

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Meet the Author

Suzanne Wagner Suzanne Wagner is a working mom who is passionate about discussing mental health and empowering women in the workplace. She works full-time in tech and explores her love for writing and art in her free time.