Take me back to the days when my mom would wake me up every morning; make me breakfast and wait with me at the bus stop. Take me back to the days where my only worry in the world was if I was going to play four square at recess.

Take me back to the days when my mom would leave me little love notes in the lunches she packed for me. Take me back to when my imagination had no limits because I didn’t have a concept of impossible. Take me back to when I wanted to be anything and everything when I grew up, when nothing was out of reach.

Take me back to the days that were filled with curiosity of the simple things in this life. Take me back to the time when if I lost sight of my mom for two seconds in the store I would be so scared without her. Take me back to the days of riding in the grocery carts. Take me back to the days of running through the sprinklers. Take me back to the days.

Now my alarm wakes me up and I set four of them five minutes apart because I’m worried I won’t hear the first, and I never end up getting up until the last. Now I rush out the door for work and school skipping the most important meal of the day. Now I get into my car and drive myself to work. Where I wish my only worry in the world was if I was going to play four square at recess again.

Now I have an endless stream of worries and stresses from school, work, friends, family and my future. Now I don’t possess the imagination that I once did as a child. Now I see the opportunities and life and limit myself through the act of being realistic.

Now I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up. Now I am not curious, I am interested and those are two completely different concepts. When you are curious you have this desire to learn and know about everything, while interest is just defined as a concern. To be curious is to be free.

Now I rarely see my family, except for on holiday breaks and a few times throughout the summer if I'm lucky. Now I have to be independent, not that I want to be but I have to. Now I have to be strong. Now I have to handle every situation I encounter on my own. Now I hold an enormous responsibility of being a successful young adult and contributing to this world.

Growing up is wonderful, refreshing, renewing. But some days I’d like to go back, when I had to be in bed before dark, when I had to take naps after school , when my only responsibility in the whole world was to be momma’s girl.