Collateral Damage
"writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear ..."
Beatles, Eleanor Rigby
This poem refers to the increasing number of teenagers suffering from depression and anxiety during the pandemic.
a girl sixteen years old Jane Rigby her name
enjoyed learning bass guitar dreaming of fame
she had many friends and was good at school too
young Jane was convinced that her dreams would come true
pandemic gosh darn it this meant separation
so lonely the people in forced isolation
too many fell victim to pure desperation
and mostly affected: the young generation
"day after day life is empty and idle"
once lively Jane had become suicidal
lasting for hours she stared at the wall
even lost interest in her best friends´ call
"don't want to talk to them, they not to me,
leave me alone, Mom, back off, let it be"
mindlessly scrolling her phone the whole night
claiming aggressively "I am alright"
writing the words of a song full of fear
that - she already knew - no one would hear
listlessly woke up lost visibly weight
for virtual classes began to be late
then social media flustered her mind
followed examples of beauty like blind
marvelled some starlets with pictures touched up
"girl, too much screen time" "oh mother, shut up"
poor Jane withdrew from life not realizing
she had been netted in smart advertising
can´t replace eye contact, skin and warm breath
finally grabbed a knife and bled to death
it happened a year ago middle of May
"collateral damage" I heard someone say
fine words of farewell were engraved on her stone
I silently added "she felt all alone"
Copyright © Anton Bradinger | Year Posted 2022
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