12 Elevens Ago

Last year, I discussed the importance of this date in my blog post April 11th has a lot of meaning. The backstory is briefly explained in the post by basically aside from my birthday, it's a date that will forever be engrained in my mind. So this year I wanted to pay tribute to the date with a poem titled "12 Elevens Ago"

12 Elevens ago today
I learned a new language.
The tongue of life and the accent of living.
I stared both dead in the eye
With half of my life staring back at me.
They were mirror images
Of a boy and a man.
The breaking point for all there was to come.
I walked into the unknown
A darkened forest with no exit in sight
Lost, I was guided by the light of the moon
And the protection of the trees.
I look back on those times
And ask how I found my way out
So long ago,
So many forests passed.
By the light of the moon
And the protection of the trees
My life became clearer
More driven and focused
To break through this forest
And discover new boundaries.
12 Elevens ago
I saw what was on the other side of that mirror
The answer to what’s next
And the response to a challenge.
Today, the language still dawns on me
Now and again.
Like nostalgic whispers
Or the smell of autumn winds.
But I am not fluent
Only with each passing year
Will I understand,
The images I saw just 12 years ago,
Again.