Fireworks

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it’s the fourth of july

the day when all of america comes together to celebrate itself

and all of new york city comes together to celebrate bursts of light

and even though i don’t particularly understand the significance of the lights

i follow the crowd down the road

and squeeze myself in between unknown bodies

a man next to me with bright red skin tight jeans and a polka-dotted blue t-shirt

a woman on my left wearing red and blue necklaces

while lighting a cigarette and earning many annoyed glances

children running around through the legs of the crowd causing jumps of shock

we all hush and look up at the sky and marvel at the deafening explosions

we stand in silence

as a few "ooh"s and "ah"s are muttered here and there

and then we clap

and the clapping roars through the whole city

guiding the empty space into the depths of the sound

and enveloping the air with the sweet fragrance of content

and laughter and smiles and lit up eyes emerge

from the darkness that follows the bursts of light

and families nudge each other as they trudge through the crowd

all of new york city becomes one

 

i suddenly understand that i am part of that one

and i have been allowed to revel with others in that unit of unity

and i can experience the magic within the city that never sleeps

but then i realize that i will be gone in seven months

cut off from the city that blankets me

a city that has shielded my eyes from the unknown for all my life

but my eyes will indeed discover this obscure unknown

as i will be shipped off to an unfamiliar town

cooped up in a remote campus

and taught how to survive

in the wilderness of a world that revolves around money

 

and i just wish that i could turn back time

to when i was alive in a world that revolved around fun

and i would have loose teeth and playdates

and all i knew of the world was dolls and toy cars

and bubble baths and sleepovers

but i know that i need to take on the world

and i know i’m inevitably alive in a world

that is dominated by green slips of paper

so i must prepare myself for this unpredictable future of mine

by having new experiences

and learning new things

and meeting new people

and traveling to new places

 

and i just hope it will all turn out fine

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