What I'd Say
What I'd Say
...to the sixteen-year-old me.
That's easy.
I'd say little or nothing.
Besides,
to my recollection,
he doesn't much like
being told what to do,
and could never understand
why all the older men he knows
are grumpy and half-dead.
He'd probably see me
exactly the same way.
And it frightens me
that he might be right.
I'm often irritable,
defeated and bewildered,
unsure what to do next,
if anything at all.
I guess I'd probably try
to show him a smile,
tell him a dirty joke
and remind him failure,
or even walking away,
are possible options,
but love will always be
the only conclusion.
After adolescence,
if one's life is sufficiently interesting,
the desire to tell oneself stories diminishes.
~ Gore Vidal
