To Stay or Not to Stay by Tamara Wattenbarger (18, Texas)

It is a stubbornness, this thing that sits on my chest and pulls open my eyes to see that there are
still things here for us.

                 There is a home to be built.
                 There is bread to be baked,
                 to be broken with friends,
                 to eat while still warm.

---

​                 There are projects that sit, not even unfinished,
                 but unbegun in a small attic space in my mind.


It is a coldness, this thing that sits on my shoulder, along my spine, in my bones, that whispers in
my ear.

                 The work will never be done                                                            unless...
                 ​There will always be more
                 lists to check off                                                                                 unless...

                 There will always be nights like this one                                     unless...

We’ll all be dead in the long run.