#12: What Kind of World do we Live In?

TW: This post goes into the topic of school shootings, gun violence, etc.

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Last week, we were instructed to write poetry. For me, this was a challenge, as the last time I'd done a dive through the world of poetry was in 1st grade, when I wrote my best piece ever:

"No" - Vidhi Kamat circa. 2011

No, you cannot have my pencils

No, you cannot have my paintbrush

No, you cannot have my paper

No, you cannot have my brain

No, you cannot have my life

In other words, I was an insecure first grader with clearly no intentions of learning the concept of "sharing". But as for the symbolism throughout-

No, let's please not do that. Jokes aside, let's talk about what I wrote.

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"Ode to the Town of Love" -Vidhi Kamat circa. 2023

A chill had set in

Seeping in through the brick walls

But this was no chilly place

For laughter rang inside, love aplenty

Unfortunately, this was about to change

For this man only had one mission

Fervently, his footsteps clicked and clacked 

Flowers dying behind his every step like a cartoon

The door opened and he walked inside

He towered over the 3-foot-tall children

He looked with absolutely no remorse of what he was about to do

For nobody stayed loyal to him when he was one with them

One thing remained strapped to his side like a fanny pack

The only thing that remained loyal

He had already decided

This one thing would do the final deed

His final revenge. 

Remember, this was no chilly place

For laughter rang inside, love aplenty

But as he put on his final show

The laughter

rang

            rang

                        rang

Until it finally stopped.

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So for those that are confused, my poem is on the topic of school shootings/gun violence.

I wasn't intending on writing about anything of the sort - I was actually going to write about the last meal I'd had, but fate had other plans. 

As isn't news to us now, on February 13, 2023, a mass shooting occurred in two buildings on the campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing. I have about 25 friends who currently attend MSU and were forced into hiding around 8 PM that evening. I hold each one of those friends dear to me - several of whom have been by my side during my worst times. They showered me with love in times I didn't want to love myself - cheesy, but true. Hearing that their lives were threatened and all I could do was sit on my bed and wait for news was devastating. I wanted to help them, but all I could hope for was that this shooter would back off and stop hurting innocent college students - what kind of world do we live in? What kind of world do we live in, where we must shiver in fear that someone with a gun could walk into an institution at any time and kill all of us? What kind of world do we live in?

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To me, poetry is written when emotion is high. When I wrote this poem, every word I wrote practically spewed out of me. I thought about my dear friends, who spent 5 hours in utter fear for no fault of theirs. Then, I thought about Columbine, Parkland, Oxford, and the other thousands of school shootings that have occurred. I thought about the, according to Washington Post, over 300,000 kids who have experienced gun violence in a school setting. My blood curdled at the time, it is right now, and I hope yours is too. Innocent children...

I picked up my pencils, and began to shred some pencil lead. I could only think of those 300,000 kids and their families who didn't deserve the pain they went through. My mind was clouded with thoughts of children in fear for no fault of theirs. I could only write.

To me, this is poetic voice.