To Submit an Article | Teen Ink

To Submit an Article

January 16, 2012
By readaholic PLATINUM, Tomahawk, Wisconsin
readaholic PLATINUM, Tomahawk, Wisconsin
27 articles 0 photos 425 comments

Favorite Quote:
I'd rather fail because I fell on my own face than fall because someone tripped me up
~Jhonen Vasquez


Click.
There it is. My article was just released
into the unforgiving network
that is the internet.

Once it’s approved,
there’s no telling what will happen.

Like a lost child,
it wanders the vast world,
icy wind biting into its exposed flesh.
There’s no telling who will come across it,
who might beat it to a bloody pulp
and leave it dying in the dirt
Or, who might welcome it,
give it a home in their hearts,
save it from being nothing more
than a meaningless speck
on the landscape.

Like a leaf in the wind,
it spirals, along with
thousands of others just like it.
It could, like many others,
fall to the ground
to be trampled upon and
never noticed again
Or, a bystander
will casually glance up,
purely by chance,
and see the unique beauty
of that particular leaf.
No, it’s not much,
nothing much more than a look,
lasting only a fleeting second,
but to a leaf, what more
could one want?

Like a small sardine
in a group of millions,
it moves in unison
with the rest of them,
forming a single, powerful beast.
For it to live out the rest
of its days like this
would be more than enough,
never really noticed,
but remaining safe and alive,
ever full of promise.
The weakest of the group are targeted
by the sharks, the harsh, stinging words
of possible viewers
and are destroyed,
never to swim freely again.

How is one expected to shine
among so many others,
all striving to be noticed?
It would have to be someone who really cared,
who took the time to analyze and comprehend
the emotion and power
behind my words.

Someone…like the first one to comment.

Something as simple as ‘I love it!’
Or ‘Awesome :)’
But I appreciate it all the same
More than they will ever know.

The author's comments:
Every time I submit something to Teen Ink, these thoughts run through my mind. After seeing all the talented writers on Teen Ink, I can't help but feel insignificant.

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This article has 6 comments.


on Apr. 1 2013 at 6:48 pm
readaholic PLATINUM, Tomahawk, Wisconsin
27 articles 0 photos 425 comments

Favorite Quote:
I'd rather fail because I fell on my own face than fall because someone tripped me up
~Jhonen Vasquez

Thanks!!!     

holly1999 GOLD said...
on Apr. 1 2013 at 9:57 am
holly1999 GOLD, Middlesbrough, Other
12 articles 8 photos 114 comments

Favorite Quote:
'There was no need to clarify my finger snap, the implication was clear in the snap itself' - Magnus Bane

I really like this. Very true and well written :)

on Mar. 2 2012 at 10:44 am
readaholic PLATINUM, Tomahawk, Wisconsin
27 articles 0 photos 425 comments

Favorite Quote:
I'd rather fail because I fell on my own face than fall because someone tripped me up
~Jhonen Vasquez

Thank youououou!

on Mar. 2 2012 at 5:57 am
Eshshah PLATINUM, Galloway, New Jersey
32 articles 31 photos 239 comments

Favorite Quote:
"The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep." -Robert Frost

huh. I like this poem a lot- it's so very true and well written, almost comical in certain places! very good job!

on Feb. 20 2012 at 3:27 pm
readaholic PLATINUM, Tomahawk, Wisconsin
27 articles 0 photos 425 comments

Favorite Quote:
I'd rather fail because I fell on my own face than fall because someone tripped me up
~Jhonen Vasquez

Thanks!!!! (And because I'm looking over my stuff to see how much you read, and this one is at the bottom of the page, I think it was....5? You know, for the contest. I think that's good...thanks for doing it!!)

on Feb. 19 2012 at 7:03 pm
hannahbananasplit SILVER, Rockland County, New York
8 articles 0 photos 29 comments

Favorite Quote:
כל העולם כולו גשר צר מאד והעיקר לא לפחד כלל
The whole world is like a narrow bridge and the main thing is not to be afraid at all
-Rabbi Nachman of Breslov
(sounded a lot better before it was translated... oh well)

I feel weird saying, 'I like it' or 'awesome' cuz I feel redundant :). Anyway, totally true! Well put!