Paulina Wodarz, age 14

This piece, written in a WriteGirl workshop, is based on an experience that I had in real life, riding a bike at night.

Becoming Alive

There was one moment.

One night.

From another’s point of view, I was simply biking. But to me, I was flying.

The dark street was penetrated by a single lamp, whose light was weak but still there. I sped past it, feeling the spark inside me being kindled. It grew and grew until it broke out of me in the form of a scream.

It was raw and real, and with that scream, I let out everything that had been sitting inside of me, chained to my heart. I am me. I am here. And that’s all that mattered.

For once, I wasn’t just not-dead. I felt alive.