This is Our USA | Teen Ink

This is Our USA

April 1, 2018
By AeM GOLD, Gainesville, Florida
AeM GOLD, Gainesville, Florida
12 articles 5 photos 39 comments

The cashier at the convenience store is covered with tattoos.
Her body represents her life, all tainted black and blue.
Customers look at the girl and tell her what they think.
She hates their words but still she scans their snacks and cigs and drinks.

The man that paints the faded house has a wild, scraggly beard,
He is as weathered as the wall across which paint is smeared.
For his entire life he’s worked, then fought, then worked some more.
But to the folks who own that house he’s easy to ignore.

The worker speaks in rolling words not all can understand.
The struggles of two different countries she has faced firsthand.
Her voice is full of feeling but it lacks comfort and trust.
Some hear her speak, they say “Get out”, but she is one of us.

The guy who wears an orange vest picks up cans and straws
By the road that leads to places that he never saw.
The cars that pass are filled with strangers heading to the beach.
They call the man the cruelest things when they point and preach.

The tired teen rides his rusty bike, wearing faded jeans.
He pedals hard, but that boy knows he’ll never reach his dreams.
This wonderous world is filled with wealth, with beauty and with good.
Why there’s not enough for him he never understood.


We might not see these people, but we pass them every day.
Their work, their pain, their sorrow has built our USA.
We think we’re different, but we share this sky, this land, this air.
Therefore, it is up to us to make this country fair.



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This article has 8 comments.


on Feb. 8 2019 at 7:05 pm
skilpadde BRONZE, Huntington Beach, California
1 article 0 photos 5 comments

Favorite Quote:
You are a child of the universe,<br /> no less than the trees and the stars;<br /> you have a right to be here.<br /> And whether or not it is clear to you,<br /> no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. <br /> ~exerpt from Max Ehrmann's Desiderata

This is absolutely magnificent!

on Sep. 19 2018 at 4:31 pm
Rhiannon_4 DIAMOND, Sioux Falls, South Dakota
62 articles 87 photos 200 comments

Favorite Quote:
If you chase two rabbits, you will lose them both. <br /> - Native American proverb<br /> <br /> Do not go gentle into that good night but rage, rage against the dying of the light.<br /> - Dylan Thomas<br /> <br /> What is past is past -- it is the present and the future that concern us.<br /> - Hiawatha, founder of the Iroquois Confederacy

This is a truly amazing poem that took my breath away!

AeM GOLD said...
on Jul. 29 2018 at 5:18 pm
AeM GOLD, Gainesville, Florida
12 articles 5 photos 39 comments
@SbS52 thank you so much!!

SbS52 BRONZE said...
on Jun. 30 2018 at 1:57 pm
SbS52 BRONZE, Arlington Heights, Illinois
2 articles 0 photos 2 comments
I'm not a poet by any means, but I was flat out blown away by this piece of art. It's robust, potent, emotional, and is also incredibly accurate. It's a spectacular and truly awe-inspiring piece. Fantastic job.

AeM GOLD said...
on May. 9 2018 at 9:15 pm
AeM GOLD, Gainesville, Florida
12 articles 5 photos 39 comments
Thank you!

on May. 9 2018 at 1:07 pm
WolfWhisperer0911 BRONZE, Austin, Texas
1 article 0 photos 623 comments
@Anna.E.M Amazing poem!

AeM GOLD said...
on May. 4 2018 at 7:05 pm
AeM GOLD, Gainesville, Florida
12 articles 5 photos 39 comments
You are so nice! Thank you for all the positive comments!

on May. 3 2018 at 3:28 pm
Malcolm_Chase PLATINUM, Madison, South Dakota
32 articles 0 photos 161 comments

Favorite Quote:
Not all those who wander are lost<br /> - J. R. R. Tolkien<br /> <br /> Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it<br /> - Confucius <br /> <br /> Believe you can and you're halfway there<br /> - Theodore Roosevelt <br /> <br /> Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.<br /> - Albert Camus<br /> <br /> It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light.<br /> - Aristotle<br /> <br /> Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'!<br /> - Audrey Hepburn<br /> <br /> The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart.<br /> - Helen Keller

Wow! @Anna.E.M, this is a masterpiece! I truly think this story is meaningful and wonderful! It truly inspires and motivates me to do the best for others! I hope many, many others can read this and be inspired too. I completely love it!