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The Teen
I am a teenager.
i'm sorry, i should say we— are teenagers. all of us from twelve to twenty,
i speak for all of us— because, being a teenager,
i have the audacity to think i have the right to do that.
(i was being sarcastic just now—
we tend to do that a lot.)
you've heard a lot about us. you've read a lot about us. you know
a lot about us. particularly psychologists.
here are some things you know about "the teenager":
one: we are extreme. particularly when it comes to drama or neuroticism.
every loss or misfortune that befalls our dynamically delicate lives is apocalyptic in proportion and the trauma is permanent damage. any good luck and suddenly life is perfect.
give us the slightest taste of something to fight for and you'll find we won't shut up.
two, we know we're right.
all others in the room are sheeple— in our (often angst-ridden) contemplations, we alone have found the true way to look at life. all others are fallacies, all others have never felt what we feel. have never understood what we understand.
This is fact. This we know.
three, we hate authority.
all the rebelliousness we have is directed straight at the people who think they can tell us what to do, the people who think they know what's best for us.
we're growing. we're quickly becoming people of our own. we're big and able to make decisions but for some reason we find that most things about our lives have already been decided.
the only solution is to make more decisions than our superiors, which means most of them are going to be wrong. it's considered a necessary sacrifice.
so we make trouble. we won't get off your lawn. it's generally because we're very deeply unhappy.
four, we're lazy.
five: "issues".
aggression issues, eating issues, mental issues, drama issues, boyfriend issues, girlfriend issues, gaming issues, sleeping issues, image issues, drug issues, family issues, friend issues, self-esteem issues, school issues, physique issues, internet issues, attitude issues, impulse-control issues, attention issues—
i have heard
the phrase "kids these days" just a few too many times
to take it seriously.
i have had
just a few too many people make just a few too many assumptions
about me and my little life.
and i am tired
of people thinking that we're the only ones won't grow up.
hey, maybe i am an angsty, impulsive, troublemaking, delinquent issue vending-machine who seeks attention by stringing together fancy-sounding words with a melancholy expression and calling it poetry.
or maybe i'm just a human. a fifteen-year-old human wishing all these adults would... just get off my lawn.
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Wow, this is really great! I felt this way a lot when I was in High School, and I can totally understand where you're coming from. Age-ism is the most prevalent kind of -ism, and no one seems to realize that. I like how you listed the "facts." Gramatically, this piece is generally really good. Punctuation is something you might consider revising. When you're listing "one, two, three, etc." I would suggest writing it as "Four: We're lazy." The colon shows that you are listing something, and it really emphasizes the pause, that is so important when listing. I suggest this to many writers: read your piece aloud, or have a friend read it out loud and note pauses they take, or that you take and be sure that the appropriate punctuation is there. A writers intent (usually) is to have their work read. Write it exactly as you intend it to be read. Punctuation is a big part of that.
I really, REALLY like your very last sentence. The way I read it, it seemed to me like the '..." should be after the word "just." Again, just read it aloud, and make the punctuation marks match the way you present it.
Really nice job. Keep at it!
Item Four
A colon would be more technically grammatical, but I love the comma; it illustrates your point (laziness) with self-referential elegance, matching the way you "didn't bother" to elaborate on your point.
emilyide-
Thanks for the comment. I just happen to disagree with some minor things:
-Age-ism is most definitely not the most prevalent kind of ism. That'd be either racism or sexism, no question. Age-ism is just another thing I care about.
-My intent is not for this piece to be read. It's a slam, which means it's meant to be performed. The punctuation is really not a concern of mine. Also: it's poetry. Grammatical rules aren't so concrete.
Still, I'm glad you liked this enough to comment! Thanks!
-River.
I'm not trying to ruin anybody's life. Sometimes I'm just really, really bad at doing people favors.
Perfect
Yes...This describes me in many ways...good way of putting it. Love your word choice.
Possibly one of your absolute best pices yet...like "Winter"
I very much like that one. It's my favorite~
If I give you my heart, will you promise to be careful with it?
I second
I agree with you. Adults know NOTHING, and yet they refuse to accept their falsehoods. Someday, when we watch their world burn, they will beg us for forgiveness, expecting divinity after they force our eyes and mouths shut. You are one of the few writers I know that writes in a way that is relevant to issues I agree with, and I will be hungry for more of your prose in the future.
*In lack of a better comment*