When are you really old enough?
Backstory
When are you old enough? Thirteen you're old enough to be a teenager. Sixteen you're old enough to drive. Eighteen you're old enough to go to war. Twenty-one you're old enough to drink. But are you ever really old enough? Is there ever an age where the world deems you old enough to lose someone you love? Or to take care of yourself? Or to suddenly be betrayed by the people you trust more than yourself?No one ever told me that at ten years old I would be more mature and responsible than my dad and at twelve I would be without my mom. She killed herself because she was mentally ill. I went to live with my dad. He's a fifty-two year old living a sixteen year olds mistake except he has three kids, two ex-wives, a failing business, two grandkids, and the charm to get away with it all. I used to live with him and whatever girl he decided was pretty and young enough to be his girlfriend.
I'm sixteen and now live with my brother. My dad has chosen himself over his daughter too many times and I can no longer live with him. Despite my new address I'm still forced to play a game of fake smiles and ignored truths. Why play this game? For my brothers who, for whatever reason can't stand up to him, because while I may hate my father I love my siblings. My siblings have kept me sane for six years, but I have only managed to become a burden to them. They deny it, but their actions scream of my intrusion into their lives. My saviors may be regretting saving me.
So now that you know my sob story, am I old enough?
by madkin in Six-Word Memoirs on Apr 22, 2012 | 
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T-shirt
Comments
canadafreeze says,
You sound strong and smart. Great combination. Nurture that.DynamicDbytheC says,
You have a great talent for expressing yourself so you are definitely old enough to write. You touched me with, "Is there ever an age where the world deems you old enough to lose someone you love?" I had similar childhood experiences to yours except that my mother died of natural causes. I have no contact with my biological father. I did a lot of work on myself to unravel all the damage of my early upbringing and have a pretty amazing life. You are young. You may not have all the tools to thrive, but go out and find them so you can. You deserve that.Loon says,
god, you two have my sympathy...my family was more like the all-American Cleavers, easy street...