if i die young | Teen Ink

if i die young MAG

October 11, 2013
By sharkie GOLD, Singapore, Other
sharkie GOLD, Singapore, Other
13 articles 0 photos 1 comment

Favorite Quote:
"That was his mistake right there. Writers aren't supposed to be vulnerably bare and ardently honest; we're supposed to be ironic, offhand, self-deprecating, deflectingly clever, stingingly derisive, and act as if we're all in this apart."


if i die young
tell 'em it was because i didn't eat my greens
never fed the hungry, didn't follow any dreams.

say it was for the revolution –
which one, it doesn't matter. i fought them all,
mindlessly, like it was routine
soaked with the blood of institutions my hands were clean
like by killing the censors i became less obscene

it was the one percent, not i, the majority dissident.
the agent orange, not my prescription meds
the cia, the fbi, the fed.
promises. polls. my nervous disposition.
i am more than just a number: i am a name
entered on a forgotten petition,
next to the spambots and single initials
etched into the memorial of a broken system.

i was slain by expansionism, isolationists, democratization,
and cultures, in the flavors of rape and appropriation.

don't say my suicide was a label
that humans are not dog food or soup cans, but people.
spread my ashes on next week's trend instead:
on the konyas, the s*** walks, #oppressive regime,
the tsunami alerts, the many starts of world war three,
my disorders, public schooling, the patriarchy.

my life was a lie. i didn't even have time to save myself,
much less to pretend to care for somebody else.
but since i won't burn out – if i fade away
don't let 'em hear, taste or see
that i was not crushed by any god or government
besides inadequate me.



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This article has 5 comments.


sharkie GOLD said...
on Feb. 27 2014 at 10:29 pm
sharkie GOLD, Singapore, Other
13 articles 0 photos 1 comment

Favorite Quote:
"That was his mistake right there. Writers aren't supposed to be vulnerably bare and ardently honest; we're supposed to be ironic, offhand, self-deprecating, deflectingly clever, stingingly derisive, and act as if we're all in this apart."

*konys, not konyas. I can't believe this made it into print. Also, thank you for all your comments. <3

on Jan. 10 2014 at 11:37 am
SabbyCat BRONZE, Stroud, Other
2 articles 0 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Fear is a sin. Almost all the evil in the world originated because someone is afraid of something." - Lucy Maud Montgomery, "The Blue Castle"

I think this is really beautiful and well-done. I also think anyone who's been through this is amazing, so well done for that too.

on Oct. 19 2013 at 10:42 pm
Stones-Under-Rushing-Water BRONZE, Nassau, New York
4 articles 0 photos 2 comments

Favorite Quote:
'Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. We are all the same in this notion. The potential for greatness lives within each of us."- Wilma Rudolph

I absolutely LOVE this!!. its cleverly written..well put together. Awesome Job!:)

on Oct. 18 2013 at 11:39 pm
Laugh-it-Out PLATINUM, Brooklyn, New York, New York
38 articles 0 photos 445 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the light" --Dylan Thomas

Wow. This is reall good. Its truly wonderful. Congrats on the editors choice you earned it. Very insightful and true. Wonderful formatting and wording. It only takes the title to hook someone in. Congrats again. Keep rockin

on Oct. 17 2013 at 9:32 pm
jazzyjess PLATINUM, Livingston, New Jersey
21 articles 0 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
"To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all." ~Oscar Wilde

Really eye-opening and fresh. I love the strength of the voice here - it's like you're telling me a personal story.