Chameleon

My friend wanted to know
Who I was
I told her I wish I knew

She told me it was scary
How I could change myself
She asked which me was real
I said all of them

She said it was unnerving
How different I was
With different people
I told her it scared me too.

She wants me to be the same with everyone
She wants reassurance
That I’m real with her

But I don’t even know
If I’m real with myself

I don’t even know what real is.

Ian Materla, 15, John F. Kennedy School, Berlin, Germany