Following the System
By Jesse Lee
Bigger game, bigger place, bigger system.
Bigger is not always better.
More recognized is not always credible.
More teammates, more competitors, single player.
Good, but want to improve. Wasn’t taught. Was told.
The reason for one’s fall is how they rose.
Put in a system for many.
But many only followed a single standard.
Drained of purpose, drained of reasoning.
The hunger begins to starve.
The system is just a clock counting.
How long will you last? Can you last?
Now your last. Will you stay at the bottom?
With a broken base.
Or rebuild knowing that this was once your happy place.
Stay down knowing everything is corrupt.
But when at the bottom,
The only place to go is up.
Poem Inspiration:
I Was the Fastest Girl in America, Until I Joined Nike
Poem:
My Reflection/Discussion:
Poem Composition:
The poem I enjoyed most of the blood and roses poems was He Sits Down on the Floor of a School for the Retarded. This poem was one of the few that spoke about the roses side for things that are intangible, and everyone could relate to. Human connection is something we all have some sort of desire for and the poet depicted it so well through his imagery. He shows the human connection between two different people that don’t know each other and how meaningful this type of connection can be. He also shows how one needs to put aside all of the societal norms and the effects of other people’s views to be able to have a connection like this. This is so relevant in today’s world because everyone sees what people can do and socially connected through technology. What I get from this through a modern-day point of view is that no matter what other people think and how connected we are through technology; we will always have desire for intangible human connection, and this is something that every human no matter what type of person they are wants to feel. This poem definitely is about the roses side, but still acknowledges some of the blood within our world through societal norms and perspectives and we also see some of the main characters arrogance through him thinking that the most natural thing about humans which is affection is unnatural. This is most likely from the conformity from society and being accustomed to what society thinks.