21st Century | Teen Ink

21st Century

September 10, 2011
By sunny.all.day. GOLD, Potomac, Maryland
sunny.all.day. GOLD, Potomac, Maryland
15 articles 0 photos 69 comments

Favorite Quote:
"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you."
— A.A. Milne (Winnie-the-Pooh)
"writing is a struggle against silence" carlos fuentos
You miss 100% of the shots you don't take."


This is our generation
Growing up newer and faster
Leaving the old fashioned
Behind to choke on the dust

We forget those who just can’t keep up
The weak, old dementia inflicted
Whose clueless looks we just ignore
Whose milky eyes are dismissed and passed by

Their pleas are turned away
Their feeble voices struggle to be heard
Above our blasting radios
And zooming, new cars

Everyday new things come
And we rejoice
Everyday old things dafe
And we just watch dry- eyed

Can we find it in our hearts
Our hardened high tech hearts
To remember them when their gone?
Remember as they were

Strong and passionate
proud, with the chivalry we’ve been missing
Carrying the strength we lack now
And we fill that void with parties and lies

But I will remember them always
So who will stand with me?
To keep them alive in dreams and memories
To live on through us

And hope the future does the same


The author's comments:
I wrote this after visiting my Grandpa in the nursing home. When we got there, all the patients on his floor, including him, were in the lobby watching an old show, but almost all of them were asleep. We had brought a card and a present for him, but when we went to say hi, he just looked lost, as if he couldnt remember us. My mom and dad kept asking "Do you remember us?" and my mom was crying. When I looked in my grandpa's eyes, they were covered in like a milky sheen, like it's always described in the books. My mom started crying and we left. I felt so bad for all the old people in the nursing home who were just left there, without the comfort of their old home, or family.

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This article has 7 comments.


so_joy SILVER said...
on Nov. 15 2012 at 11:46 am
so_joy SILVER, Navesink, New Jersey
8 articles 0 photos 722 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Be the change you want to see."

Great job! I like this very much. It made me sad and I want to reach out to Alzheimer’s patients now. Thank you for impacting my life. Please read, rate, and comment on my poems! It would mean a lot.  

.Izzy. BRONZE said...
on Nov. 7 2011 at 8:25 pm
.Izzy. BRONZE, Broadview Heights, Ohio
1 article 0 photos 388 comments
I think a lot of people should read this poem. My grandma has Alzheimer's, and although she may not remember me, I'll always remember her. This is a very powerful poem and I liked it a lot. Keep writing!

on Oct. 14 2011 at 5:21 pm
BrightBurningCampeador PLATINUM, Portland, Oregon
42 articles 11 photos 333 comments
This is a very powerful poem. I agree we should take better care of our elderly. I mean, come on people, ever heard of karma? Golden rule?

on Sep. 27 2011 at 9:36 pm
rainbowsnowleopard GOLD, Boise, Idaho
10 articles 6 photos 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
one teenager sent a message to a newspaper saying: two homosexuals moved across the street. she wondered what she could do to improve the quality of the neiborhood.

the response: well, you could move

haha thanks i cant wait

on Sep. 27 2011 at 3:12 pm
sunny.all.day. GOLD, Potomac, Maryland
15 articles 0 photos 69 comments

Favorite Quote:
"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you."
— A.A. Milne (Winnie-the-Pooh)
"writing is a struggle against silence" carlos fuentos
You miss 100% of the shots you don't take."

Haha, stal.ker buddies :P Thanks for the comment and reading it and so on... 

I hope to see more of your work (choppy or not) :) including pictures/ painting, etc.


on Sep. 27 2011 at 12:52 am
rainbowsnowleopard GOLD, Boise, Idaho
10 articles 6 photos 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
one teenager sent a message to a newspaper saying: two homosexuals moved across the street. she wondered what she could do to improve the quality of the neiborhood.

the response: well, you could move

im sorry for not getting you back or really leaving a comment for this poem. but it was very sad and i love how it was set together...

anyway i havent posted anything in FOREVER because like i said my dad follows me on here... ANYWAY i am so happy to have a stalker for a good reson.

and now admitidly i stalk your account haha but i agree my old poems arnt very fluent, neither are my new ones, im more into art tho. but i hope i can see more of your work and mine aswell!