Sometimes I still see myself in that Dress:
A girl pretending to be a grown up,
Waiting to make a first impression
That I knew had to help me pass the test.
I answered all your questions-
And apparently did quite well at that.
I inquired of your opinions
Awed by the opportunity
To hide my inadequacies and put my fears to rest.
But despite all the formalities,
The significance of that moment
I didn’t know would open so many future doors,
I don’t remember a damn thing
About what you asked or what I said–
About how I got swept up and pulled ahead.
All that vividly stays despite years pulling me away
Is a question on the stock market
(Which you curtly told me you invested in)
And an inhale knowing I was now in a world over my head.
…And I still remember that scan up and down my body;
A summing of my appearance- my being- in a second or less
And whether it was enough…
I still see you inspect me
As I stand in that simple Goodwill Dress.
–Written by Sandy Heights
