“woman sitting on wooden dock by the sea” by sasint on Pixabay

When I was about
ten-years-old
Amanda
passed away.

At 15, I still miss and
think about her a lot.

She was sweet,
caring, and
selfless.

She had
black hair and
brown eyes.

It was July when
we moved out of the home
she lived in at the time
of her death.

Moving caused
mixed emotions.

I was upset about leaving,
yet I was excited about
a new start.

Though I’m still upset about leaving,
I’m also a lot happier.

Even though I didn’t want to move,
moving was a good thing for me.

Her name
was Amanda.

She was like
a second mom
to me.

On October 31st, 2021
it will be 5 years
since she passed.

My parents got remarried.

I’m in 10th grade now.

I was diagnosed with
depression,
anxiety,
epilepsy,
and so much more.

I have definitely
grown up quite a bit,
but will always remember

Amanda.

Words from the Author – Haelyn Kessinger

I wrote about this subject because it is something very close to my heart. The person it’s about is some I hold dearly to my heart even though she’s no longer with us. I wanted to write about death, grief, and moving on for other people because I had a hard time with those things. I want to let people know that it’s okay to grieve and move on. It is actually good to move on and you can still grieve if you do.

Revision Decision

“At 15, i still miss her and think about her alot” / ”She was sweet, caring, and selfless” / “She had black hair and brown eyes” were revisions that enhanced the poem. I made these revisions because it basically tells my age and describes her. I think that writing what she looks like is very important, because then when you’re reading my poem you can have a mental note on what she looks like.