I am from living without regrets

by Bogdan Blashishin, age 17
photo by Liliya Khylchuk

I am from dancing at a rave with crazy teens I don't really know
the beats that Dj Tiesto and East Clubbers bring
and 2Pac getting put 6 feet under for the way he made rap music today.

I am from “Superstars” by Ya Boy and from Lil Jon yelling, "Yeah, yeah!" and "What!"
But the one place that turns my crazy from normal to outrageous
is shopping at Lion Logo for a line called Express.

I am from watching my family make a life for all of us
coming to a new place in 1997
from where we were living hard when my sister died.
It was hard knowing she was there
on my birth in 1992, raising me from a little boy.

I am from growing up shooting hoops with my best friends to getting older
and using those skills for shooting beer pong.
Now I'm back in school, getting my
childhood skills and putting them in the game.

I am from humans living like humans and not fighting like beasts.
From living by the Bible, for it makes a person's life the way it is,
where parents know what's good from what's bad.
From living hard with my dad around
and mama giving us the best she had
with little time to watch me grow up.
I always had my brother and sister to keep me out of stuff.

I am from enjoying a walk to church,
knowing that it's gonna be boring, from not
being patient enough for the sun to set,
knowing Saturday nights are the best.

When I was born my mama taught me
to do my best and taught me life's all about
the qualities that make a person great.

I am from moments of laughter to moments of tears,
from scary dreams
I was living, hoping I would awake from.
Where loved ones, like my baby
cousin Serj, were living a hard life
and no one helping them out. From where
running next to him with a case of beer,
I say: Bro, that was really fun.