Within Reach | Teen Ink

Within Reach

June 25, 2010
By cantfindascreename BRONZE, Chino Hills, California
cantfindascreename BRONZE, Chino Hills, California
1 article 0 photos 28 comments

Favorite Quote:
"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in service to others"


For the past year, I have lived my life as a bear. I have spent my time growling and hunting down my prey, until finally, I have secluded myself into a den for hibernation. Alone in my den is the only place where I can think; reflecting on the events that so drastically changed my life, and on the only person who has ever taken my life out from under me.


It’s funny how people say that being alone allows you to hear yourself think; they only thing that I am able to hear is her voice. Over and over again I replay the words that changed my entire life, words I never thought I would hear her say. I wish I could have seen where it all started going wrong, but I suppose that in the end it would have made no difference. The distance between us was growing slowly yet steadily, despite the fact that I did not feel it at all. The friendship that had gotten me through five years came to an abrupt halt, and now all my other friends have left too. Going from a place of certain love and security to a place where I feel unwelcome and alone has not been an easy transition, and my response, though angry at first, has eased into my separation from the life I had once known. On the inside, I know I am the same person that I once was, the only difference being that nobody knows me anymore.


Nobody genuinely realizes the similarities between the ending of a long and stable friendship and the ending of a long and stable marriage. In both situations, possessions are returned, and custody of the people you both loved is determined. In my case, she was given full custody, while I was left on my own, my only option being to discover a new life. At first, the others were sympathetic to both parties, but as time went on, their once abundant love trickled to a finish. I am officially on my own.


For now, I remain the bear in it’s winter den, seeing nobody, and keeping in contact with only myself. I plan on emerging from my hibernation with a fresh outlook on people and on my life, but there is no telling of when that day may come. I know who I am, and I plan on letting others know me again sometime in the future, but only once these painful wounds have faded into scars on my skin. They will always be there, with the painful memories that accompany them, but no longer will they have a place on my surface, where they may be punctured and reopened.


She knocked the air out of me, and my life has not been the same since. With shaky breaths I have deleted every part of her from my life, and eventually I hope she will be deleted from my memory as well. For now, I have learned how to manage my time in hibernation, and I live in safety. She may have stripped me of the life I have always known, but I know who I am, and the life I want to live is still within reach.


The author's comments:
This story, though exaggerated, came from the ending of a friendship that i depended on to live my life normally. I hope that other people that have experienced this same situation realize that a person can not change you, you always need to remember who you are and what you want out of your own life.

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This article has 21 comments.


on Jul. 9 2010 at 3:35 pm
HeatherBee BRONZE, I Live In, Texas
1 article 0 photos 1979 comments

Favorite Quote:
Go on and try to tear me down. I will be rising from the ground, like a skyscraper

Love is louder than the pressure to be perfect

very nice :)) i like ur overall message. ok u want advice on how to make it better?? ummmm, i think u couldve...added how the friendship ended and how u felt, and u couldve extended on more of who ur friend was to you. ? thats just a suggestion...well anyway, good job!! this had nice voice too