It IS quite the dare because it's kind of scary to show this super old stuff.
Fortunately, about the oldest thing I could find is SERIOUSLY old. I'm not exactly sure how young I was but I think this poem is from when I was about eleven. I'm pretty sure this is the summer before 17th grade - and I turned twelve right before school started - when I'd gone to a summer enrichment program for gifted and talented kids. I'd taken a poetry class there and had just learned this kind of free form style. I entered several poems into a library contest, at the branch that I could walk to down the street.
(Back then I went by "Jennifer Mize" because I was trying on "Jennifer" as being more adult than "Jeffe," my childhood nickname, and my stepfather hadn't yet adopted me.)
And I won 3rd Place! I have no idea who the judge was, but they were generous to me.
For those unenthused about slogging through the photo, here's the text:
Night
The lady Night is a sorceress, appearing
joyously in her magic,
touching things to make them hers.
Her gowns are rich, dark velvets,
her crown is woven of stars,
her wand is a shaft of moonlight -
transforming what she wills.
Donning grey, or black, or purple,
(depending upon her mood),
she ventures forth forever
dancing in her age-old spells.
Some creatures know her beauty through stirrings
felt in the soul,
but others know only her darkness,
who can't see the rich black glow.
And her dress lightly rustles as she glides
on through my life.
I resisted any edits or corrections. Weirdly enough, I recognize a lot of my current themes and imagery in this.
An interesting exercise, nosy SFF Seven mate!
