okay, this is just a beginning, not a whole piece....
so uh, yeah... here goes
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Teach me. Teach me to see the ways of the wide world, so that I may know them when I first set sail from this shore. Teach me of dreams of kings and demons and dragons bent on death. Teach me of sorrow and pleasure in equal measure, that I might be learned when I earn my spurs, and men will call me wise. Teach me of joy that surpasses all things, and pain to make men weep, that I might speak knowledgeably to all those who come to my feet, seeking answers. Teach me of stars and the paths they spin, like dolphins at play in the sky. Teach me of night to beat out the sun, which conceals my pain from the day. Teach me of day, to renew my spirit, that no night can break me in twain. Teach me to fly high to the burning sun, and touch her golden rays, to heal the heart that will be broken, and warm my night-chilled body. Teach me, of all things... and teach me how to fall slowly to the sea?s embrace, that the mermaids might sing me to peace. Teach me of a thing called hope.

Once, I was walking to the park by myself, looking around at all the people passing by. I tripped on a crack in the sidewalk, and like all little kids do, I started to cry. Not because it hurt, even though it did. But because I was so embarrassed, with all those people staring at me, out there in a public place, and it was so sudden? My lip trembled a little; I brushed away my tears and started to push myself up, intending to run as fast as I could to the park to escape the people on the street and hide the shame of my falling, and even worse, the shame of my tears.
As I started up, however, a kind face floated into view. An age softened face, the gentleman smiled at me in his jeans and boots, his t-shirt proclaiming him the very essence of youth, while his sagging brows and lined face said very much otherwise. His wide brimmed hat shadowed my face and blocked the sun. I was surprised, taken aback, and very shy. I didn?t like strangers at all, but after a brief moment my indecision faded away, and I took his hand. He helped me to my feet. ?That was a nasty spill there. You tore up your hand a little bit, but I think you?re ok, just a little surprised...? He made a questioning noise in his throat and winked at me. Far from being irritated, as I would normally feel, I smiled and was reassured. So we walked, hand in hand to the park, the stranger and I, talking amiably about many things that my young heart felt so passionately about. From the correct construction of monkey bars and how many Transformers a little girl was reasonably allowed to own, to the sadness that filled the hearts of the people around us, and the subtle hues of rainbows, and how it all made me want to weep. A strange conversation for a young girl and an older man perhaps.
We came to the park and we played tag, chasing each other around with stick ?swords? and later flying high, close to the clouds on our flimsy swings. We sang loudly, silly songs that made us laugh as we soared, his deep baritone and my high child soprano. He stopped suddenly, looking at his watch, and took off, he said, to fetch his grandson from the boy?s mother?s house. ?For ice-cream,? he said with a smile and a gentle wink. I never saw him again, but somehow that day I knew, as I watched his empty swing still swaying while he walked across the grass, that I had come to an important decision. What, I could not then have said. It was to change my life. That much I knew, and the suddenness of it all should have startled me to tears, like my earlier fall to the pavement. Instead, I was sure of myself, strangely comforted, like being wrapped in a giant hug, confident of my way. Confident also, as I thought about the old man, so quickly come and gone, that though I would never see him again, I knew I would not walk my road alone, there would be others to guide me.