A world where more happiness and light radiates from your profile picture than from your heart
A world where the number of likes on your Instagram “selfie”, or of “retweets” on your post are an accepted evaluation of your self-worth
A world where the number of filters on your phone is greater than the number of things you can name that you like about yourself
A world where the little numbers on a scale measure by how many pounds too many you aren’t good enough
A world where a jeans size up means a confidence level down
A world where a bra size up means less eye contact and more lowered eyes
A world where a bra size down means shame and awkwardness
A world where numbers of girls is to be praised over numbers of years with one
A world where what you look like judges people as the saved or the damned
A world where you spend hours at home sitting at a desk in the night scribbling things and in the morning, go to scribble things at a desk in a different building
A world where those scribbles are scribbled on and the resulting scribbles can make you happy or sad.
A world where people copy other people’s scribbles for better resulting scribbles
A world where little darkened circles on a strip of paper help to determine if you get to have a future
A world where little darkened circles under your eyes are an accepted sacrifice for that future
A world where carbs and calories fill up the space of points lost
A world where number of episodes binge-watched is greater than the number of hours you sleep
A world where deadlines are the rungs of a one path ladder, from which you must leap off of to be your own
A world where we make more eye contact with glaring screens than with real people
A world where hellos and thank yous are endangered species because everyone is in a rush
A world where words are used as knives instead of paintbrushes, and knives are used as weapons instead of cooking utensils
A world where people squeeze conversation to pieces of text, away from face-to-face chatter
A world where we’d rather shrink back than hold hands
A world where books are a safe haven instead of just an experience, and where a safe haven… is so hard to find
A world where we’re so scared of failure, of rejection, that we stop ourselves halfway through
Because if you try your best and fail, it’s scarlet letter burned on to your soul
A world where “childish” is a bad thing, and puddles are to be stepped over instead of splashed through
A world where the words unsaid hurt as much as carelessly sharp words tumbled out
A world where it’s more common to say “I love pizza” than “I love myself”
A world where love is a commodity to be sold, and instead of a precious treasure
A world where pieces of paper and metal are chosen over people
A world where judgment is more common than encouragement
A world where cutting comments drip from fingertips to be burned into someone’s skin on the other side of the computer screen
A world where some people make up the rules and others limbo under them
A world where we build up our own cages and lose the key in the process
A world where people hate, hurt, sob, judge, betray, steal, cheat, destroy, kill—
Where there is a serious deficit of love, and too much money

A world where people write poems about the world’s problems but can’t—don’t— change themselves.