I am a millenial,
I live above my means
and I am mad at everyone
because I can’t afford to live like this forever.
I am a millenial and I hate everyone who keeps asking me for money
that I grudgingly give
while I’m left sleeping hungry.
I am a millenial who knows
how badly my education
has screwed me, a millenial
who has seen the government enrich
a few potbellied power brokers
instead of creating jobs for us.
I am a millenial and I blame my boss
that I haven’t afforded a car
or even a better life at my age.
I am a millenial struggling to look trendy,
and gnashing my teeth
whenever fashion changes because
I cannot afford to keep up.
I am a millenial whose mind thinks
a million different things a day,
but is still thought of and treated
like a lazy, unthinking idiot.
I am a millenial who could apologize
for wanting things to fall in place right now,
don’t you see how there’s so much life to live
and so little time and resources to live it all,
why chastise me for wishing, for trying?
I am a millenial but from today
I’ll remember that it’s my responsibility
to create the life I want for myself.
My government, society, parents, degree,
job, boss, partner, don’t owe me anything,
their being here is the only reward.
But neither do I owe anyone that
which I don’t have with me to give – –
whether it’s time, money, or energy – –
because borrowing from A to please B
is a fool’s paradise and a house of cards.
I accept that I have to work
for everything I want;
and I accept that some things in life take time
even after you have already given your best.
I accept that I earn too little
to live the flashy lifestyles
I covet in others, and, philosophically,
that there’s nothing wrong
in living a simple life,
that life’s real ecstasies are had equally
both by the lowly and the mighty,
even though the means may differ.
I accept that if I budget well
and save diligently,
I’ll definitely get where I need to be.
I’ll never hate life or people or things
because they are not as I want,
instead I’ll extend my heart and grow
to where I can love them just as they are.
I am a millenial, and I’m tired of being judged
because my philosophy is different,
because my mind and heart are free,
unencumbered by the dogmas
that kept my ancestors in shackles.
Letters from the Men's Den 