The Cost | Teen Ink

The Cost

August 4, 2022
By avocado_writes30 BRONZE, Beaverton, Oregon
avocado_writes30 BRONZE, Beaverton, Oregon
2 articles 0 photos 0 comments

Favorite Quote:
"...this idea that he could create some part of his future, that would be the most difficult lesson to learn, as well as the most rewarding."<br /> <br /> - A Little Life, H.Y.


The victory after the war

Millions fallen; soldiers and civilians alike;

Elders. Adults. Infants.   


The soil drenched in their blood

The air, a metalic tingy wave of smoke and debris

A smog derived from gunpowder and man’s putrefying hatred 


You stand alone in solitude

Your ears ringing, like bells 

The chime of battle 


Two years past; yet the war still lingers

Splatters of blood like slashes across my armor 

The mud, a marroon marsh, sucks on my boots.


I look around

The scene before me, 

One of destruction and still-hot iron


You stand in solitude; victorious

At what cost?


Everyone. Everything. Anything.

Loved; or with its potential, long gone. 

Lost forever


You stand alone in solitude; victorious 

Isn’t the point of war to win?

At what cost?


Losing yourself

Standing alone in solitude, the shell that was once

home to the soul

Standing alone in solitude; victorious


Your soul the cost of war


The author's comments:

The most necessary, and consequently the most difficult step in self improvement, is having to dissect your past. As the laws of self-improvement state: In order to move on, and be that new better version of yourself, you must first lose the version you once were. That is why it is so important to allow yourself to grieve during the journey.

And while the media portrays self discovery as a positive thing- don't get me wrong, it certainly is. There is an aspect people don't talk about as much. 

Through self discovery we explore and divulge aspects of ourselves we never knew existed. But in doing so, in finding those facts– those pleasures, those pet peeves, those loves and hates, those boundaries, those feelings, those memories, is that what we discover becomes amplified. Prominent and imminent. 

This stage can sometimes be detrimental to our well being if done incorrectly, or when we are ill-equipped or unprepared for what we may find. 

The cost, is about a person embarking on this journey to self improvement and love, and finding her/him/them/self in the rubble of their past. Discovering their trauma, alone. 

- Avocado, 17


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This article has 2 comments.


Afra ELITE said...
on Aug. 7 2022 at 10:06 am
Afra ELITE, Kandy, Other
103 articles 7 photos 1824 comments

Favorite Quote:
"A writer must never be short of ideas."<br /> -Gabriel Agreste- (Fictional character- Miraculous)

Sorry, I meant Avocado...(I just hate it when autocorrect 'corrects' my texts...)

Afra ELITE said...
on Aug. 7 2022 at 10:05 am
Afra ELITE, Kandy, Other
103 articles 7 photos 1824 comments

Favorite Quote:
"A writer must never be short of ideas."<br /> -Gabriel Agreste- (Fictional character- Miraculous)

Avacado, this is a really powerful poem...I literally got goosebumps!!! Keep writing!!!★★★