Bounded by time,
we bind our minds
rushing, chasing,
as if youth is a deadline,
as if dreams expire
if not achieved fast enough.
Gotta make it young,
or it doesn’t count,
so much that we forget
This is our life.
Achieving is cool,
and not achieving is cool too.
But they won’t tell you that,
will they?
The dark circles, the shaking hands,
the quiet panic behind every breath,
but no one asks if we’re okay.
As long as we perform.
As long as we smile.
But forget your existence
if you stop performing for a while.
We chase approval in pixels
likes, views, numbers
mistaking digital applause
for real connection.
We curate our lives,
crop out the loneliness,
filter out the pain,
while drowning in it offline.
They tell us to be different,
yet expect us to fit in,
to speak up,
but not too loud,
to stand out,
but not in the wrong way.
We measure our worth in numbers
grades, followers, salaries
as if existence itself
needs validation.
And so we run,
exhausted, anxious,
trying to prove ourselves
in a race that never ends.
But how do I tell you?
perfection is a myth,
success has no age limit,
and life is not a competition
but a journey to be lived,
not just survived.
____________________________________________________
We measure our worth in numbers
grades, followers, salaries
as if existence itself
needs validation.
And so we run,
exhausted, anxious,
trying to prove ourselves
in a race that never ends.
But how do I tell you?
perfection is a myth,
success has no age limit,
and life is not a competition
but a journey to be lived,
not just survived.
©umclite
U