I wish I could make it all stop. I wish I could sit and watch them frozen in time so I could memorize this version of each & every one of them. I wish I could remember the way their faces crumble with tears & the way their faces light up in delight. I wish every single one of these moments would stay. Frozen. Here. With me.

I wish they didn’t feel the heartbreak & cry the tears & learn how much this can all just hurt.

But I want something different. Don’t we all though? There’s something about how trying to steer them from our mistakes that doesn’t let them make their own. And man, mistakes are so important.

Sometimes I miss the girl I was. But, then I look at the woman I am & see how far I’ve come.

And it’s hard because sometimes I take a deep breath and the scent reminds me of the me I used to be and tears spill.

But never… until now did I realize that I get to decide who I’m going to be.

Isn’t that fun?