Dreams and Thoughts of a Teenage Girl

Reality

I don't know how it happened.
It just started out of nowhere,
the world all in my face with a big bang.
Suddenly, life wasn't all so happy-go-lucky,
It was cruel, silent, dark.
It went from seeing a world full of happiness, and only happiness,
to a world that thrives on grief and sadness.
Everything went from rainbow, to grey.

Maybe that's a sign of growing older, or maybe it's just me.

Suddenly people are so mean to each other,
We call each other the worst words imaginable.
Some of the most offensive words are used as labels to friends.
We call each other sluts, we call each other the b-words.
And now it's not just girls against girls:
Boys expect you to do what they want and when you don't?
Well, I guess you're a slut... just like every other self loving girl.
You can't love yourself enough to reject someone without being called names... makes sense, right? Wrong.

Self love is promoted in our society, but in moderation.
Don't hate yourself, but also don't be confident all the time because then you're egotistical.
There's no balance to society.
People tell each other as a joke to kill themselves.
People joke about suicide and slitting your wrists, it's cruel.
We live in a society where people that really struggle with these problems watch others around them fake the same symptoms as a practical joke.
People with OCD constantly hear "oh my gosh I need to straighten these lines I have OCD"
People with depression are told by friends and family that when someone said "haha that's dumb go kill yourself" it was only a joke.
People with stutters are told to grow up and speak normal.
People with schizophrenia are automatically crazy, they aren't even given the treatment they need.

We ignore the true reality of people. We normalize abnormalities with jokes, we poke at those reaching out for help.

Wake up! Our societal norms are killing those in it! We have to stand, we have to fight, we have to protect. We have watched the pushing, now it's time to stand and guard those unable to guard themselves.
No matter how big or small, each life on this planet matters.