Wake up
Do my hair
Put makeup on
So they don’t stare

Wait a minute
Nothing’s wrong with me
I have friends
And a family

Whoa, good thing I didn’t keep goin’
That almost turned out like another
teenage poem

You know the ones
With darkness, death, and despair
Ones with “I hate my life, it’s just not fair!”

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve written a few
like that in my day
Some poems like that are great
But why write about sadness
When there’s so much more to say

Why should I write about war and hate?
Yes things go wrong
But the rest is great!

My grades... awesome
My boyfriend... couldn’t be better
I’m not gonna be another teenager
With a gun and a letter

I want to grow up, have a life,
Get a great job,
And be somebody’s wife

Don’t dwell on the problems of today
Live for tomorrow
And you’ll make it somehow,
Some way