Me then did not know much of anything 
I did not know how it felt to be nervous 
About running over to a different aisle in 
The grocery store by myself to get bread while my 
Mother picked from the discounted deli items 
 
I did not know that nobody was interested 
In why I was crying every day when I got to school 
And waited in the cold for the bell to ring 
 
I did not know why my father would always 
Change the channel when he heard the phrase ‘LGBT’ 
Or saw someone with odd ink littering their skin 
 
Nor did I know the reason why my sister stayed 
In her room most days during the summer and 
Played sad music through the night, turned up very 
Loud and sounding very angry 
 
There were many things I did not know 

Me Now 
 
Me now knows many things 
Not all, but many 
Many more than me then 
 
I know why my psychiatrist says I need 
More than one session every three months, and a 
Therapist for extra measure 
 
I know how it feels to be stressed, and 
Overwhelmed with the fact that everything 
Can’t always be simple like my grandmother 
Seems to think 
 
I know the truth as to why some people 
On the news fill the streets 
With signs, pleads and screams 
 
There are many things I know 

Me When 
 
Me when I am older, and sit back in the chair my 
Deceased grandfather sat in will know 
Many things, even more things than me then, 
And me now 
 
I will have realized that I am me 
And no one else, that it was my choice of 
Whether I wanted to defend those that 
Hurt me, those that tricked me into 
Thinking that I am who I am not 
 
I will have understood why I felt upset 
When my math teacher told me to pay 
Attention and not write stories about my 
Favorite stuffed animals on the back of my notes 
 
I will have had an answer to the question of 
Why I began shaking and fidgeting at the mere thought of 
Disappointing the ones I loved, for I always  
Thought and worried about how I would be without them 
 
There are many things I will know 
Many then, many now, and many when