When did girlhood end? I argue that it’s still alive in some ways. Like when I pass the park and sit on the swing-set. Skip rocks on the lake. Whisper through crooked teeth. Fold my knees close to my chest. Laugh hard and forget about everything that came knuckling its way through with force. The kind of force that takes your breath away for different reasons. I try to revive pieces of girlhood whenever I can. I wish it felt as free as it used to. How our secrets turned into confessions and tears were no longer from laughing too hard. I guess if it lasted forever then we wouldn’t realize the delicate moments we once held. I can’t bring myself to think of girlhood ending. I won’t be the one to kill it. Maybe it’s just evolving, after all. -AMT ©️