Moving Oceans By: Morgan, Canada

Growing up in a healthy society forces you to learn to validate your feelings.

You can’t be sad because someone, somewhere, has it so much worse.

You are trained to think of your problems as insignificant raindrops on this massive earth

And where I live, being a girl is like being a raindrop

I am part of the country’s majority but I feel so insignificant causing small ripples in the ocean of my society.

I’m a member of the Girl Guides of Canada and within the organization I try to make myself feel less insignificant.

We cook a Christmas meal for local women’s shelters,

Paint animals on children’s innocent faces,

Plant over 400 trees in a tainted rainforest,

And sing our favourite campfire songs as loud as we possibly can.

And in those moments

When I can feel our voices shake the trees

I swear we can move oceans.

I know that our raindrop selves will one day collectively cause a destructive flood.

So being a girl where I live means being a raindrop,

Being part of something so collectively huge

That our waves just haven’t crashed yet.