Dear Lucy,

One day
all too soon
you are going to be graduating middle school
sitting in the plastic folding chairs
waiting for your row to stand
your name to be called
and
you’ll wonder
where sixth and seventh grade went.
How have you already lived it?

Then
you’ll blink
and
you’ll be months away from graduating high school
but
it all went by way too fast
You could have sworn
Yesterday you looked down
at your lock combo for the first time
clicked it onto the freshman hall locker
and rushed at the sound of the first bell
you’ll wonder
where fourth, fifth, middle and most of high school went
you’ll want to go back
not to change anything,
but
to slow it all down

Because each moment is fleeting
every week zooms by
even the slow ones have you asking:
How is it already Thursday?
and
you’re terrified of leaving home
but
even more scared of how fast it all went

Because what if
one day
you wake up
you’ve already lived
death is knocking
but
it all went by so fast
your kids have grown
they have kids themselves
but
wasn’t it just yesterday
that you walked into first grade
kissed your mamma goodbye
and
sat down to start your life
You were going to do amazing things
but
time went by so fast
the more you try to hold on
the faster it all seems to go

so Lucy
hold on to every moment
don’t waste one second
because
time
it goes so fast
one day you’ll begin to wonder where it all went
don’t let that be today
my beautiful cousin
don’t blink

love
Hannah