The Similarities | Teen Ink

The Similarities

May 7, 2009
By elizabethr PLATINUM, Lynnville, Indiana
elizabethr PLATINUM, Lynnville, Indiana
23 articles 0 photos 4 comments

*The Similarities
The smoke is curlin- off his last cigarette-he breathes in one last time-&then removes it from his mouth. He tosses it onto the ground-&smashes it down-the only thing left of it now-is the end; barely smoldering-trying not to go out for good.
I came upon the cigarette-after the guy has left-I picked it up &held it in my hand-inspecting the tiniest of details-rollin it around-to me it seems worthless-but I wonder if someone else might think of it as a treasure.
As odd as it may seem-it reminds me of this life I live-how people hold my life in their hands-how they use it, use me,-for only a short while-until I’m no longer of any use to them.
&then they throw me away-&step all over me-tryin their best to destroy me…to destroy my life-&then after all the short-term joy &the long-term pain they cause me-they just walk away-like I’m not even really there.
&then all that’s left of me is this tiny flicker-a tiny smoldering piece-..I’m hangin on for dear life now-not really sure what’s to come of this-I’m trying to the best of my ability to shine in this dull world-I’m working on rekindling this fire, this fire I call my life.
&then I, myself, remind me of how this world seems to act towards me-of how people come &pick me up-after I’ve been tossed away; they’re inspecting me, holding me, wondering what they should do with me-they’re not really sure-they don’t know what to do with this fragile thing we like to call our life...
Cause to me, like the cigarette, my life seems like trash-like it has no value whatsoever-but to others my life may be worth living, it may be worth trudging through this pain-they might find beauty-a diamond in the rough-I might be exactly what they were looking for.
I never thought I would be sitting here now-I never thought I’d go through the things I have-I never thought I would be comparing my life to something as peculiar as a cigarette-I wouldn’t of thought that people might actually care for me, or that I could be their friend, that I could make a difference in their life-when I’m failing at rescuing my own.
It’s amazing to me how things change-how the world works-how time seems to fly by. It seems like yesterday when in reality it was weeks ago-day to day, time seems like it has stopped, like it’s never ending-but now I look back &all of a sudden I realize that 13 years have gone by-it’s amazing what you’ll realize when you’re just sitting here-staring out the window.
This life is so confusing-I’ll never completely understand-and now I know that I don’t even want to try to. My life is just a smoldering tiny piece but im going to keep on shining-just like the cigarette, I’m going to beat the odds-I’ll prove them wrong…I’m going to keep on living.


The author's comments:
I know this poem isn't written properly &has grammatical errors. I just wanted to say that you should never give up hope &I truly hope this poem helps you through the rough times. I know I am young but I have been through many trials in my lifetime, I've seen the good and the bad. The words in this poem are from my heart &took about 5 minutes to write so it's not the best and i do apologize, but please take these words to heart &remember them when life is at its worst.

Similar Articles

JOIN THE DISCUSSION

This article has 2 comments.


on Nov. 26 2009 at 11:39 pm
bamboom212 PLATINUM, Chestnut Ridge, New York
23 articles 0 photos 155 comments

Favorite Quote:
"The truth with a bad intent, is worse than any lie you can ever invent."
"You are smarter than you think. You are stronger than you look. You are braver than you feel."

i luv this poem. It has true meaning & u described it so well. This is an amazing poem. I know zactly wat u mean by the time and never back down. That's so true. Best of luck 2 you!! Keep ur head held high :)

on Jun. 19 2009 at 1:03 am
ShernayB. DIAMOND, Southfield, Michigan
62 articles 1 photo 881 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Some things will never change"---Tupac

This is really good. I like how you use the analogy of comparing your life to a cigarette. It's truly amazing that you did that. This piece is filled with wonderful attention grabbers and I just really love it. I mean, five minutes to write this? This is an amazing piece. Great job!!!