when did the stress start

kid

a child

unburdened

innocent and free

when did the stress start

was it elementary school

the standardized testing

the atmosphere of mean

the ever changing cycle

of friends and snakes

was it the worry rolling off your parents

the sense of wrong in the air

the dread building up in your chest

the constant impending doom

was it the anxiety that you absorbed

the speed of life slipping through fingers

the fear of things yet it happen

the sheer amount of unknowns

was it middle school

the unyielding 'it's not like this in high school'

the perfectionism from other's expectations

the procrastination which worsens

was it the hopelessness

the empty void growing in your heart

the lack of any real choices

the feeling of drowning on dry land

it started before high school

the pressure of college

the unending job search

the realization of how fucked everything is

maybe it happened in elementary school

maybe in middle school

but the stress started

and there's no turning back

but they were right

ignorance is bliss