Age Seventeen

This is a coming of age poem that I wrote on my seventeenth birthday many years ago.

Here I am at seventeen,

Feeling youthful, strong, and lean,

Like and invincible human being

Because I am age seventeen.

Now that I'm age seventeen,

The world's no longer cruel or mean.

I can conquer anything

Since I survived age sixteen.

Now that I've reached seventeen,

My feathered wings I begin to preen.

I can take flight, feel the air on my wings,

Now that I am age seventeen.

Since I've become age seventeen,

feeling youthful, strong, and lean,

I can only ponder the thing:

What joy will eighteen bring?