He said I was an absolute zero,
my life would amount to nothing.
On the way to school I looked down
and focused on the cracked sidewalk.
Broken bottles and empty cans
scattered like abandoned children.
In class I chose a seat in the back.
Classmates chirped like morning birds
savoring flowers, honey, and sunlight.
I closed my eyes and saw a rope
hanging from a ceiling fan.
Then somewhere deep in my being
a voice spoke, an old friend
before there was darkness, and said:
Live. Live to spite.
Live to prove them wrong. To live
Is the meaning.
On the same cracked sidewalk home,
I noticed what I did not before:
dandelions everywhere,
bright yellow like the warm sun,
green furry stems, tall and proud,
not far from the bottles and cans earlier,
which now seem pathetic and dependent on
the dandelions’ brilliant suns.
~
If you or someone you know is feeling desperate, alone, or hopeless call 1-800-273-TALK
(8255).
