I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by conformity,
     stripping away their identities in favor of blending in,
     morphing into the same person as everyone else,
self-proclaimed individuals who concerned themselves with being accepted,
     the only true measure of self-worth in their eyes,
who wore clothes with the goal of not standing out,
     like soldiers in an army attired in the same uniforms
     of popular clothing brands and fashionable shoes,
     none of which they might have truly cared for,
who did not say what they wanted to say,
     but instead what others wanted to hear,
     agonizing over every word,
who chose friends based on social hierarchies,
     shunned those who fit down below,
     hating themselves for doing what was wrong,
     respecting themselves for doing what was right,
who feared being judged,
     yet still judged others unmercifully,
     critical eyes and piercing stares traded,
     mean gossip and cruel rumors exchanged,
who sought comfort from social media,
     based on the amount of likes,
     the number of online friends,
     even mere strangers’ comments,
     superficial things that still determined so much,
who ignored their real interests,
     avoided pursuing anything that required passion,
     in lieu of doing what other people enjoyed doing,
who sought the path most traveled,
     the choice that was guaranteed to be right
     in the realm of safety and certainty,
     instead of the path never crossed before,
     never daring to transcend boundaries,
     never daring to venture beyond the known,
who did all of this,
     in the pursuit of “being normal,”
     but with the internal desire to be different.

What monster of words and ideas bashed open their skulls
     and ate up their brains and imagination?
Society! People! Our culture! Mass media designed to influence the public! Authority figures who thought they knew best! Humans’ nature to crave acceptance!
Society! Society! A self-created dystopia! Society the miracle   that transformed into a nightmare!
Society! Society whose eyes cannot discern between genius and stupidity!
     Society whose eyes cannot discern between ordinary and extraordinary!
Society! Society who began with good intentions and soon grew corrupt!
     Who is made up of magazines covers plastered with celebrities,
      bodies unattainable,
      showing our minds how we should look,
Society whose beliefs are derived from the masses,
     from music to film to television to technology,
     governing the norms of popularity,
Society who ignores the hidden masterminds among us,
     dismissing their original thinking,
     belittling their efforts to be the change
     when it means questioning what has come before,
Society who tells the youth that anything is possible,
     but washes away dreams with the tide of reality,
Society who already fits every person into a box,
     a prison cell they will always be trapped inside
     no matter how people work to escape.

Individuals everywhere! I’m with you in a world
     where you are weirder than I am,
     though not by much,
I’m with you in a world
     where you do not feel like this is a bad thing,
I’m with you in a world
     where the craziest ideas are often viewed as the most brilliant,
I’m with you in a world
     where we are supposed to take the road less traveled,
I’m with you in a world
     where we each contribute a unique verse of our own
     to the powerful play that goes on,
I’m with you in a world
     where you do not immediately believe what we see and hear
     and instead make your own decisions about it,
I’m with you in a world
     where diverse opinions and beliefs always should exist,
I’m with you in a world
     where you could be laughing at what I am saying right now,
I’m with you in a world
     where creativity is the best form of self-expression,
     thought of as one of the most valuable assets of human  nature,
I’m with you in a world
     where you actively do the things that speak to who you are,
     and you are celebrated for doing so,
I’m with you in a world
     where we open ourselves up to everyone we meet,
     embracing the countless possibilities for new relationships
     with as little prejudice as possible,
I’m with you in a world
     where one real connection is more powerful than ten online ones,
I’m with you in a world
     where we see the best in others
     instead of always searching for the worst,
I’m with you in a world
     where we do not limit our own potential based on what other people think,
I’m with you in a world
     where like and equal are not the same thing at all,
I’m with you in a world
     where you only feel like screaming
     when you realize that you have never truly lived,
I’m with you in a world
     where “being normal” is overrated.