Today is my birthday. I'm one year older on the outside, but on the inside I'll always be 10. Growing up doesn't mean you can't have fun, but as you get older, you realize that things were funner and simpler when you were younger. But as things get harder in your life, you learn how to be strong, for whatever life throws at you. Getting older doesn't always mean acting more mature, or your age. But it does mean learning how to take things more seriously in life. Once a month, if I feel too old, I get out my poke`mon cards or my barbies and act small again. It helps me feel like I can go back to those days when everything was as simple as eating your carrots, or taking your daily nap. Not like today when the simple things are finishing your math homework, or doing your laundry. I think this speech has gone on long enough. Happy Birthday to me, and my friend Jessica, who's birthday is tomorrow. I love my life now, and I wouldn't change anything in it for the world. I love you Len. I love you Jessica, and I love all my friends and family. No matter how much I might want to disappear or them to disappear, I know they'll always be there to help me. <3

~Erica: Age 15.