Ten Minutes Poem by Kelsey Tennant

Ten minutes left in class.
It feels like a year.
A year til I'm free,
To wander as I will,
To talk to my friends-
But then
The Bell.

The dreaded bell
That rings without cease.
That reminds us shrilly
That we are not free,
Not yet.

Not yet.
Not yet.

Soon,
Maybe too Soon,
We will be free.
Free to make mistakes,
Free to screw it all up,
Free to starve.

But also free
To live,
To make big choices,
To go where I want to,
To be me.

Now one minute left
Until my short-lived freedom.
Practise for when I'm
Older.