a graduation poem

I wrote this for a girl I've known for several years now who just graduated from high school. I love her and really hope the best for her life.

For Taffi (Graduation)

You’ve grown up like a little rose
tender among the thorns
you fight to be heard
and long to be loved
even through the pain
even while the thorns prick at you every day
You’ve decided it’s normal
and it’s your lot in life
but sometimes the pain is more than your soft pedals can stand
and sometimes you wish you were dead
and you’d rather give up
than be hurt one more time
But still you rise. You bloom
and try again
hoping for the best
facing disappointment and loss
agony too deep for anyone else to understand

But you are a little rose
for all the beauty inside you
like a gem, glimmering bright there
amidst the thorns
Valuable because you are
beauty in itself
no matter who appreciates it
And you were created for a purpose
maybe you’ve yet to find
unfolding, as you live this life
like pedals that grow
full and bright
you will bloom
some day soon
and it will be hard to recognize you
from the place you began.

Little Rose, these thorns can be cut away
and we will all be amazed
at everything you accomplish
in those days
when you are raised from death to life.