It’s mandatory.
It’s the event, thankfully, we didn’t pay for.
We realise an exoskeleton would have been more useful.
Our dislike for pears or giant squid.
We discover the difference between a peccadillo and a major offence,
when we committed one assuming it was the other.
Not yet long in the tooth
we take too long in the bathroom;
short on wisdom,
we know this comes with special teeth, later.
Parents threaten to sell us,
which just makes us giggle more.
You’d think we were a different species,
judging by what you find in our pockets
and fittingly our artwork is appreciated –
depending on where it is.
A talent for the trumpet is followed up
with a mute for Christmas.
We progress slowly from ‘why’ to ‘why should I?’,
from ‘how’ to ‘how much can I have?’
With hindsight we’re glad we didn’t cash it in.
Maturity, on the other hand, is optional.