once in the rain,
now in the sun.
once full of friends,
now stuck in a corner of darkness.

the damp air i loved
is now full of sweet air.
i've known a life,
that is now long gone.
the new world...
is not full of love.

two years passed,
i'm still in the world.
but it isn't as different,
as i once knew.

i have friends now,
my old freinds still give letters.
i am going to a new world soon...
i wonder what it is?

--kiele marston

this poem was written by my 10 year old, kiele. she is studying poems in school and brought home a few today. i truly couldn't believe it. a girl, who i once so worried about because she was profoundly delayed in speech and reading (due to her hearing impairment), is now an avid reading and writer and in the top 10 percent of her class. i'm so proud of her and she inspires me to become greater than i ever dreamed.