12.15.00

Persistence
by Jason Swiger

Tell me I will quit. Tell me I won't be a pro. Tell me I'll throw away my
time. I'll still skate.

Ridicule me. Hate me. Speak ill of me behind my back. I'll still be out there.

Harass me. Yell at me. Kick me out. Call the police. I'll still come back.

Scowl at me. Give me those dirty looks. I know them all by heart. I am still
skating.

Tell me I'm dumb. Tell me I'm killing myself. Tell me its wrong. You are
still on the outside. I'm on the inside. I know what I love.

Put me into your little bin-- I'm just another teenage rebel that won't
amount to anything. Yes thats right I belong in that group. Go ahead clump me
with them. I'm not an individual after all am I? I'm ignoring you too.

Bend me. Bruise me. Break me. Hurt me. I'll still come back to you. You are
my skateboard I can't back away from you.

Stand up for me. Help me get up. Call for help when I need it. You have my
respect. You are my friend.

Freeze me. Burn me. Dehydrate me. Cramp my muscles. I press on. I persist.

I am a skateboarder. I skateboard. Nothing can change it. It has branded its
mark into the hide of my soul. Never again can I be the way I was before it
started. Even if I stop I will never truly stop in my mind. I will still see
the steps and blackened curbs as a playground. It persists inside of me.

Persistence.