Adults
It’s too hard for you,
You wouldn’t understand.
That reasoning is impossible,
Stick to your plan.
School is a privilege,
So work your hardest
Every day.
Don’t follow the cool kids,
Be who you are.
Back when I was a kid,
I was up at dawn,
Did my chores, schoolwork,
And then ran four and a half miles for track.
Why aren’t you more
Like me?

They don’t understand,
And they never will.
They’re too busy sewing or crocheting,
Until –
Their fingers will go stiff,
And their bones will turn brittle.
Their feet won’t walk my halls,
Their fists won’t bang on my doors
Demanding I do this or that,
Because that’s what they would’ve done
When they were young
Like me.

But when time turns
Against them,
And their friends are all gone,
They’ll look at me
With all their life’s regret
Reflecting off their eyes
Into mine.
They’ll see how much I really watched them
When I shouldn’t and should’ve been.
They’ll see all the things I do and did,
And they’ll ask me,
With sorrow in their voices;
“When did you become
So much,
Like me?”