Poetry Corner: Great Expectations

While waiting in a car in the Utah State University campus parking lot, I wrote the poem shown below. My friend had just run into a building to pick up something and she didn't want to pay for parking, so I waited in the car in case I had to circle the building.

Originally, I dedicated this poem to my friend. I really admired her. She was a dear friend, and someone who crossed my path at the right time for sure. By the time I completed the poem, right as she was walking back to the car, I realized something that startled me.

In that moment, I hoped that some of the amazing attributes that I loved in my friend would one day rub off on me by association. 

I realized in that very moment that I could actually conceive of the possibility that one day, in the not too distant future, I might like me too. 

This was the first time I honestly entertained the idea that I might actually have the potential to become this kind of woman. This was a very powerful thought, so powerful that it was the catalyst for real change in me.

I originally entitled the poem, "Silent Adoration." Over time, however, I felt it was appropriate to rename the work to match my new feelings.

Great Expectations 

I stood alone

staring into my shadow

hoping to see the image

of a friend I know

The epitome of womanhood,

beauty

kindness

hope

friendship...

I stood still

hoping my shadow would become 

light -

hoping my shadow

wasn’t really “just me”

I stood alone

I stood still

I stood in prayer

waiting

to see the image of a friend

in me

By Diana M. Bateman

1996 ©