Middlebrook

Beauty in the Eye of the Beholder

Yucca, Sage, Mushrooms, Dirt, Arugula—

A young girl plants in the garden. A young girl gets dirty and messy and it's ok because she’s a young girl.

A young girl takes dirt from her garden and plants a terrarium in an old mason jar.

A young girl doesn’t know if she’s a girl. She’s not a boy, but she thinks she’s too young to

think about that. Because young girls aren’t supposed to think about that. That's what mom and dad say.

A young not-girl takes out weeds in their garden. They rip the weeds out, one by one. They don’t belong in the garden.

Just like how little girls aren’t supposed to play pretend as little boys.

A young child squeezes their terrarium and cries.

A young boy can’t be a boy unless he’s in his garden, growing and changing.

A young boy has changed out the seeds in his terrarium. Growing and changing, a young girl, who has to be a girl, because that’s what mom and dad say.

Mom and dad are always right, because

“We bathed you and clothed you for you to turn out like this; we accept this but our

daughter?”

A boy plays with the seeds in his garden. He isn’t young any more. There is no excuse for knowing

who he is.

A boy is himself. A boy who plays with seeds in his garden. A boy who is himself.

Carnations, Peony, Lilac Hydrangea, Orchid—

Beauty changes.

IzzyGail Jo Middlebrook, Grade 6 Saint Paul Academy – Upper School, Saint Paul Teaching Artist: May Lee-Yang