Unanswered? I would’ve answered any question, Hannah. But you never asked.
If there’s one thing I’ve still got, it’s my memory. Which is too bad. Maybe if I forgot things once in a while, we’d all be a little bit happier.
Olly-olly-oxen-free.
And like I said, I didn’t know him very well, but my ears perked up whenever I heard his name. I guess I wanted to hear something – anything – juicy. Not because I wanted to spread gossip. I just couldn’t believe someone could be that good.
It was one of those things where, once I noticed it, I couldn’t stop noticing it.
They wanted to teach us the meaning of x in relation to pi, as opposed to helping us better understand ourselves and each other. They wanted us to know when the Magna Carta was signed-never mind what it was-as opposed to discussing birth control.
Statement number two: “Just relax.” Translation: Come on, Hannah, all I did was touch you with no indication that you wanted me to touch you. If it’ll make you feel better, go ahead, you can touch me wherever you’d like.
That’s what I love about poetry. The more abstract, the better.
The main thing I wanted to say, and thankfully it’s what most people say they get out of the book, is simply an acknowledgement that we do affect each other in ways we can’t predict.
If my love were an ocean, there would be no more land. If my love were a desert, you would see only sand. If my love were a star- late at night, only light. And if my love could grow wings, I’d be soaring in flight.
And what about you-the rest of you-did you notice the scars you left behind? No. Probably not. Because most of them can’t be seen with the naked eye.
When you hold people up for ridicule, you have to take responsibility when other people act on it.
If I had a chance with him, I missed it. No, I didn’t miss it. I threw it away.
Yes, it feels great to plan your life when you believe everything can turn out fine. But what about when you’re shown, again and again, how little control you have over anything? No matter what I do to try to fix my future, it doesn’t work.
Why would anyone say this stuff about themselves on the Internet? It’s crazy!
And what if in the future we’re at war again, or we still haven’t elected a non-white or non-male president, or the Rolling Stones are still dragging their tired old butts on stage? That would depress me way too much.
Maybe it’s not as important to you as it was for me, but that’s not for you to decide.
We all know the sound a camera makes when it snaps a picture. Even some of the digitals do it for nostalgia’s sake.
It’s nothing. A school project. My go-to answer for anything. Staying out late? School project. Need extra money? School project.
That’s what I love about poetry. The more abstract, the better. The stuff where you’re not sure what the poet’s talking about. You may have an idea, but you can’t be sure. Not a hundred percent. Each word, specifically chosen, could have a million different meanings.