"MY IMAGINARY FRIEND"
by Tahlia Hunter
When I was a little girl,
I had an imaginary friend.
When I was teased for being ugly,
she would whisper to me
that I was beautiful
and when I sat alone, without friends, she remind me that I was wanted and loved.
But as I started to grow older,
she visited me less and less,
until she told me one day,
"I must leave you now.
You won't be able to see me
but still I will be with you, always.
in every high and low of life
I will remain by your side,
and though I may appear invisible
you will still be able to sense and feel me.
Every kind word
and every loving encounter,
is a message from me.
And when you reach the end of your life,
we will be reunited again.
It is not goodbye forever,
it is only goodbye until then.
And until then,
you must speak to yourself
that words I told you
and remind yourself
that there is a place for you in this world
that only you can fill
and that you are loved far more than you can ever imagine
and are deserving of being here."