Youth is a Concept - Jay Schoenrade

Youth is a Concept

By Jay Schoenrade

At the age of 10, I was too young, Too young to fall in love, Too young to know the career of my dream, Too young to know the value of a crisp one dollar bill.

At the age of 12, I was too young, Too young to stay up past 10 O’clock, Too young to get a job and slave away for the scrap pennnies the billionaires are willing to loan us peasants. Too young to be exposed to the horrors of the world Played on repeat by the news Day after day— Night after night— Week after week—

At 16, I was too young to know who I loved,

Photo by Miranda Jones

Too young to discover my own beliefs. My own values. My own identity. I was too young to plan the life I wanted to live, With the people I wanted to know, And the person I wanted to be. But of course not. Im just a -stupid childToo young with no life experience. Too young to have my own thoughts.

But I agree I was too young. Too young to be crushedCrushed by the weight of debt the failing economy has forced onto us for an education I don't even want. I was too young to be forced to grip my keys between my knuckles— Walking back to my car swallowed in the darkness hoping there is no one lurking and hunting me. Too young to be leaned over the side of a toilet puking up the pressure I drank down at the partyjust trying to be cool; just trying to fit in Too young to be crying over missed opportunities and those whom I miss cause I had them bury them in mother nature’s floor. We’re too young to be preaching the names of people shot in the streets by the same officers we were told to trust our own lives with. We’re too young to be forced into activism because we know goddamn well our elders won't stand up and fight for our basic human rights! We’re too young to be attending funerals of friends that’s won't be able to walk across the high school stage one last time for graduation— The graduation we’ve been working towards for 13 goddamn years of hell!

We were too young at the age of 12, Too young to be carving suicide packs into our skinPromises binding us together in the pain twelve year olds should not have. We were to hound the be carving designs into our skin, thinking it made us prettier. Trying to control the internal pain with external pain. Planning our next designs in accordance to our outfits ensuring no one would find out.

I was too young when I learned what the word rape meant. How to protect myself from predatory people looking to hunt me and hurt me. I was even younger when I didn’t know what the words sexual assault meant, and when I didn’t know how I could’ve stopped it

Yes I am too young. We were too young. But, we’ve been too young for far too long!