BRIGHT ADOLESCENT

by ISIAH

To the bright adolescent, the expectations rise
for he shows his true self when he holds back no lies.
He’s looking for affection and acceptance of those close to him,
and only gets complaints due to successes before.
His heart is torn from the bruises and sores,
but everyone thinks he’s fine because
he has a key to open any door, but he can’t open up any door,
even though he’s a problem-solver, he can’t decode his own mystery,
when he thinks he has the answer, it still goes on like infinity.
Sure, every human can function with just basic needs –
drink, eat, sleep, is that all I need?
But he needs something more,
something to cry for, something to ball up in your fist
and die for, something that makes us lust for more.
When everyone is telling you what you should do,
you forget your own options. He wonders
if it’s possible to handle all the stress this is causing.
His vision is blurry.
He has no glasses just so he can see clearly
between what he loves and what he holds dearly,
so his eyes start to water and he feels so sad,
thinking it’s pathetic to even think like that.
So he tries a new strategy,
instead of going fast, he decides to go steady,
not worrying about the future, just about what he has already,
and it ends up fine because everything’s working for me.