Seventeen

Is it truly possible

To feel old, torn, and worn out

At the age of 17?

Feeling as if life is an ocean

And you’re swimming, trying desperately.

Trying to keep your head above the water

With anxiety and stress suffocating

Your whole being.

Institutions with the sole purpose of

producing efficient and obedient robots.

To carry out the duties of the successors.

The educational systems that facilitate the

nuts and bolts to allow students to operate.

To function correctly in society.

It’s impossible to be different.

At 17, why do I feel overwhelmed?

I look in the mirror and I cannot recognize the

reflection staring back at me

All I see is a cold stranger

With swollen red eyes

Possibly from crying every night

So much to prove

The pressure builds up

One mistake and it all spirals down

Being an overachiever

Is not what one asks to be

Everyday feels like an organized hell

With everything done to a precision

You can’t turn back now

Because at 17, you have the mentality

Of an 80 year old

Physically young but

Mentally drained

I want it to end

The sufferings, and pain