Eager Young Mind

The confident young fern,
Desperate to learn,
Builds her unskilled pride.

With a brash heart,
Rash from the start,
She rushes the frayed sky.

Held back by a parental arm,
The charge harbors charm,
But arouses no alarm,
Eager though it be.

Dismayed but undaunted,
She struggles against bondage,
And my watching soul is haunted.