Lose the Training Wheels

    A teenager came up to chat with me after last week’s event at the Oak Park Public Library. “I have a poem published on the internet,” she said.
I was impressed, but I was busy signing books. I didn’t have time to ask what the poem was about. “Send me the link,” I told her. She did.
Her poem is published on a web site Called “Lose the Training Wheels.” Turns out the teenager is an identical twin. Without being able to see her, I had no idea she had any sort of disability. She and her sister were born prematurely, though, and the teen writer participated in a bike therapy program.
Here’s her poem. I think it’s great:
Learning to Ride — A Poem About Bike Riding
By Jessica

Unconquerable, undefeated, and proud
The wheels turning,
People whizzing past my face,
I wanted to learn
I wanted to ride
But I just couldn’t

My pink bike with “balance wheels”
People laughing,
As I felt hurt down deep within

I tried and tried but fell
It was frustrating
But I got back up again and tried again and again

Finally, the pink bike – the “balance wheels” gone forever
I felt like a mighty king at the top of a mountain,
Who was now unconquerable, undefeated, and proud.

Way to go, Jessica. You oughta be proud!