Little Girl

I used to be a little girl 
She frolicked in the trees
Splashed in the brooks and sang every morning.
She asked innumerable questions
About math, about music
And she always wanted rules to be followed.
But that girl is slipping away.

I used to be a little girl
Who was maybe afraid of the dark
She loved the color purple, and cookies, and playgrounds. 
She wondered what it would like
To be an animal, or even an adult
With a little girl of her own
Who had the same laugh, the same smile.
But that girl is almost gone.

One day, I met that little girl
Sitting on a swing at my favorite playground
She stood up, and looked at me
Her sweetness and innocence shining like the sun.
I smiled at her in a silent farewell
Saw her turn, and slowly walk away
And I said goodbye to the little girl
Who used to be me.