From a young age we are told to dream
Dreams tarnish into expectations
All for the cycle of their scheme
Carrying the burden of past generations
Living is to regret the time that will pass
You’re conquering sandstorms in an hourglass
Papers suffocate you but so will a screen
Do we learn to know or learn to be seen?
We come from life sustained by the sun
But bear creation sustained by sin
They’ll silence the youth with chalk-written lies
And forever do so until money dies
In an era where justice is absent
To be young is to justify punishment
Allude our passions to lack of responsibility
Confine one’s zeal to unmatched poverty
You can’t name your hardest battle
If you’re too young to know anything
But through small wins seeps out change
And change still counts as something
Author’s Note:
My piece was inspired by the passion exhibited by many teens such as myself around the world, yet opportunities to succeed are hard to come by due to the issues that restrict my generation. It talks about the pressure we face to learn and shine, but how we are limited from doing so due to the growing dilemmas in our current world. Furthermore, we are expected to exceed expectations while also facing belittlement and underestimation that previous generations throw upon us. This poem also tells the message of how finding a career is a battle between surviving or living life. Although we are surrounded by a plethora of problems and decisions, at the end of the day it is our choice and our actions that decide how we’ll live and the impact we’ll leave.
Dayna Robin Medina | 14 | Perth, Western Australia | @chemisrobs on Instagram
