A budding young boy wanders the school,

Footsteps patter to the beat of his heart.

His classmates snicker and act too cruel,

He wonders why life has fallen apart.

He is a night owl consoled by the dark.

An angry lizard with scaly disease,

A birch tree with flaking layers of bark,

A shape-shifting chameleon at unease.

Countless creams and oils provide no cure,

His bright life's fabric tearing at its seams.

While he longs to be center stage, brave and sure,

A teen superhero awaiting his dreams.

One day he says, "In the sun I feel better."

This epiphany brings light therapy.

He transforms from an active volcano,

To a sea of shining tranquility.

He smiles at me,

The trapped bird is free.