Listen here, little girl
Now you feel ugly, unwanted
You look in the mirror and brush your hair too hard
You stretch your neck out and hope it thins
You press your stomach
Bemoan your small breasts
And you know, inside, no one will want you
That’s the stupid thing, you think you know,
And you have no clue what the future will hold
How beautiful you will one day be
How funny and sensual and altogether wonderful
But oh, little girl, you have to wait

Listen here, little girl
Now you feel stupid, senseless
You look at your worksheets and tug your hair
You read the pages over and over
You let your grades slip
Feel like it’s your lot in life
And you know, inside, that you’ll never be as good as
The straight-A sister who has never struggled
And that’s the stupid thing, you compare yourself to her
When you’ll be just as smart and strong and powerful
But oh, little girl, you have to wait

Listen here, little girl
Now you feel awkward, lonely
You stand on the sidelines and play with your hair
You think of things to say in conversations but stay silent
You talk to yourself
Wait for the right time that never comes
And you know, silly thing, you will be forever unloved
Because you like weird, specific things
Like Dungeons and Dragons and musical theatre and robots and zombies
But girl, that’s the stupid thing, there are others there who like that, too,
And they will arrive and you will love and be beloved
But oh, little girl, you have to wait

Listen here, little girl
You have power in you
Inside your hands is the potential to change the world
Inside your mind are ideas that will touch people
And little girl, don’t you dare lose that
Just to be the same as everybody else
It’s not worth it, baby, it’s just not
Little girl, I know it’s hard, believe me, I do
But one day you will stand onstage and speak and affect
Little girls who are just like you were
They will come up and speak to you and tell you how
They have never felt like they were understood more than in that moment
Little girl, you will help little girls everywhere
But oh, baby, darling, little girl,
You just have to wait