• I Will Not Cry Before I Die

    When I'm born, I will not cry.

    If I fall, I will not cry.

    If I scrape my leg, I will not cry.

    If I break my arm, I will not cry.

    If glass shatters and sticks in me, I will not cry.

    If I get a shot, I will not cry.

    If I break my backbone and can never walk again, I will not cry.

    If my boyfriend breaks up with me, I will not cry.

    If my friends abandon me, I will not cry.

    If my parents die, I will not cry.

    If I get shot, I will not cry.

    I will be strong before I die.

    Tears show weakness, which I am not.

    Now I'm 18, and on my way home from work.

    It's dark, and I don't have a car, so I walk.

    I hear footsteps behind me.

    I stop.

    The footsteps stop.

    Someone is following me, I'm sure.

    I break into a run, a man is running after me.

    I turn the corner and see my apartment complex just up the road.

    I'm almost there!

    I reach for the stairs, then bang!

    I've been shot, and I'm laying on the ground bleeding out my head.

    But, I shall not cry one juicy tear.

    What's this?

    What's this I feel sliding down my cheek?

    Is this what I think it is?

    Oh no...

    I've cried...