You're Walking Off A Bridge With Your Life

You'll be dead or in jail by the time you hit 20 years old.

God you’ve changed.

What the f**k is up with that?

I don’t understand.

 

I guess we’ve both lead very different lives. I guess when you grow up with violence on the streets, that’s all you know. Your fathers and uncles and older brothers are all probably the same way.

Why would you live like that? “Gangs.” Really? Come ON. You aren’t even out of high school yet and you’re already into all that. Like seriously. You guys thing your tough. Real thug. You’re a real man.

Well guess what. Getting through jail isn’t a milestone. It doesn’t make you a real man. You aren’t “real” for going to jail and coming back cooler and tougher. It makes you stupid. And really f*****g ignorant.

You’re probably raising your eyebrows right now, or maybe laughing. Maybe you’re showing your friends or making a facebook status about this. “Some white girl who doesn’t know what the f**k she’s talking about.”

I know enough.

I may not be all up to date on whatever the f**k your “gang” or hood is doing. But I get it. And I think its stupid. I mean seriously. This whole youth gang rival s**t you’ve got going on isn’t even real.

Take your s**t to Compton or Detroit and see how real you are. How thug you are. Go ahead.

And I’ll bet right now you’re probably thinking deep down, “she’s right. This is f*****g stupid.” I’ll bet you are. But I don’t know how deep down that gut feeling of yours is. And you know why it probably isn’t popping out to you right now? Why you haven’t already considered why I’m trying to tell you this?

Because your damn pride and reputation is in the way.

You know how in cartoons and a character is in the desert, and they see palm trees and a pool of water in front of them? And they continue to work their way toward it thinking there’s some grand prixe that’s gona save them at the end, but when they get there it disappears? That’s a mirage. An illsion. That’s what all this is. You see something ahead of you that you want. A bigger reputation, money, drugs, power, you name it. But guess what? You’re going to keep going toward it because you desperately want it and you aren’t thinking straight. When you get to the end you’ll realise it’s nothing. And you’ll think back to that time you first saw the prize. And all the time and struggle you went through to get to it. And you’re gonna be thinking, “Goddamn I was stupid. How did I not realise this was fake?” And then you’re going to keep thinking over this, and it’ll come to you how unrealistic the prize was. What are the odds of palm trees and a pool of crystal clear water right smack in the middle of a desert?

I’m going to write more later, but I hope you think about this. Before you lose everything.

Reviews

[Coyote Poetry]

I like the way you write. People who know what the city is. Need to write. I was born and raise in Detroit. At eighteen I joined the Army and never looked back. I learn there is more than violence and drugs. How do you change the kids in the city? Schools, jobs, opportunity and allow them to hold on to dreams and hope. Detroit had 60% unemployment. It is a dangerous place if you are looking for the wrong things. A powerful poem. I hope you write a book one day. Maybe you can save some lives. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on a important topic.

[Shaquana Adams]

I love the passion in your writing. You take me right there in the story and I see through your eyes. You remind me of this girl I went to school with. She wrote similar to this, except her stories were all poems. She ended up wining first place in a poetry contest, with me trailing in third. Great work :)

[Listmaker]

A passion felt, truth that I hope your friend heard. I am assuming this is a true story.

[Azalea Belle]

Thank you :) And yes, unfortunately it is.

[Azalea Belle]

Actually I'm going with him to see Ride Along in theaters this weekend.

[Listmaker]

Good luck getting thru to him. It conks literally save his life.