Say What?

She was a blonde bombshell.
Heads turned
when she passed by.
And, what's more,
she had a shining
and valiant spirit,
but  no clue
of her own worth.

Her mother dreamed
a bigger dream for her
than her daughter 
dreamed for herself.
With awe and admiration,
she had watched
this girl
make her journey:
every time she fell,
her spirit would
always
find its way
to rise again.

The flying
was always
a wonder to behold.

This time
this spirit
so meant to soar
had trembled
on the brink.
Almost - almost -
the girl was
going to fly
higher than
she'd ever
flown before.
But at the
determining moment,
she retreated
to what felt like
a more comfortable branch.
There she
perched uneasily,
surveying what
she hoped
might turn into 
Normal.

It had felt too scary
standing on the brink,
and she had fallen back
into what was familiar.
And now
she glows beside him
like a star
orbiting
a most unlikely planet.

Her mother has watched
this pattern
repeat itself
for generations.
She has lived
this pattern
herself.
She knows
a soul can only learn
at its own pace,
in its own time,
in its own way.

A choice has been made.
It will play out as it will.
She has no more
wisdom
to impart.