The Weight of Your Wishes

I know you expect a lot from me

You want me to be the best i can be

But with every passing day, your wishes grow

Ever more burdensome to bear.

And i get crushed under the weight of your wishes

Like leaves getting trampled underneath your boots

The crunch of the leaves like my soul getting crushed



I know you expect a lot from me

To achieve a 4.0

To establish good morals

To go to college

To have a career that you deem worthy

So i try as best as i can

I lift your expectation as if i'm holding up the earth

And if i stumble, if i fail

The price is too be buried underneath those dreams

Those dreams of showing you how good i am doing


You want me to be the best that I can be

So i do what i can to show you

That i'm trying to be my best self

And you inspire me everyday to work harder


Your expectations steer me daily

Shaping my every move

To try my hardest in school

The A’s lineup on the wall, like trophies tall

But they didn't come free

Endless nights spent doing work

My hands tremble like a flickering candle

I hear your wishes banging on the door

The door knob rattling


Trying to get into my head

Your wishes have turned into a shadow

I see your shadow following me

Lurking in every corner that I go to


But i know this is for

My best interest

You push me because you truly care

And you push me because you see my worth


Hi, my name is JohnPaul Villagomez

But everyone calls me jp

You have always been there for me

Your expectations carve my path

You want me to become someone that

I will be proud of


I truly appreciate you more than

The words that come out of my mouth will shout

From every lesson that you taught me as a kid

To the lessons you still teach me now

Even when i wasn't someone you wanted me to be

You were still there, because you knew eventually i would be


I hope one day i can look back at

Those expectations and lessons

And one day I will be so thankful that

You helped me become that person

That i am today

You carved a path for me that i followed

So in the future i can finally pave my own trail


Your expectations are burdensome to bear

Sometimes I wish they weren't there

But the more i grow up the more i realize

That not everyone has someone like you

Not everyone has someone to look up too

So i appreciate everyday that those expectations

Are hovering above my head

Because one day they will be gone


So i hope i have made you proud

And if not yet then i hope i will in the future

And become the person you want me to become

Because i'm still trying to convince you

My shadow is something worth following

Because i still chase the light, hoping one day

My shadow is one you'd walk beside

But first I need to convince myself that

Im someone worth becoming

--JohnPaul V., 9th-12th Grade