Next To A Tree - A Poem By Gian Carlo

I wrote this poem in 2017 before I moved out of Puerto Rico. It was one of my favorites.

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From a far, what do I see?

A little boy crying next to a tree.

As I keep getting closer, my tie keeps getting tighter.

I kept walking because my father raised a fighter.

Vultures flying above me as if they were keeping me company.

They are only there to watch me fail like many.

Cold sweat in the desert.

The closer I get, the more it hurt.

Flowers of my past kept blooming behind me.

Is that life telling me this is a funeral or that I'm free?

Sun-rays gave me warmth when I could be burning.

The more I fail, the more I'm learning.

As I got closer, what do I see?

The little boy crying next to the tree was me.

-Gian Carlo