Nobody tells you
That all the rules they give you to follow
Are only meant for you and not them
They’re meant to be sandbags to
Keep you from getting ahead or
Becoming happy
You only find this out when you see them
Bragging about how they got something
Only because they were brave enough
To say to hell with the rules
Nobody warns you that the people
Who were supposed to protect you and
Care for you more than anyone else
Will often go to the most extreme lengths
To crush your spirit
It’d be nice if someone would tell you
Ahead of time that some of the things
You felt most confident about
Would turn out to be your
Biggest mistakes
And some of the things you put off
Because of how much they terrified you
Would be the best things you ever did
There’s no owner’s manual that
Gives you a heads up about your friends
How some of them are actually
Enemies in disguise
And others, others will be so dear to you
That you will weep from missing them
Long after they are dead
Or simply drift out of your life
If you knew this, you’d punch the
First group in the face
The very next time you saw them
And the second group, you would
Throw your arms around them
And squeeze them tight and tell them
That they’re the most important people
On the face of the earth
You wouldn’t let go until you were
Certain that they knew how much
You loved them
But in all fairness, no one is able
To accurately tell you who will betray you
So you just love all of them like that
Until you learn who is actually who
Nobody prepares you for the boredom
Of that great new job you landed
Nobody explains why animals
Are more full of love than people;
Except for those genuine friends
We already mentioned
But it doesn’t take long to
Discover these things
If you’re reasonably intelligent
And paying attention
You will find yourself a job
That you can tolerate well enough
You will surround yourself with
A very small handful of those
Genuinely good people and
Keep them as friends, always
Nobody tells you in advance,
The things that turn you on in private
They aren’t actually wrong,
Even though everyone says they are
As long as you only do those things
With the people who genuinely want
To do them with you
If you are exceptionally wise,
You will completely ignore
Absolutely every single thing
That any other person ever tells you
About who, how, when, where, and why,
When it comes to how you go about
Loving another person
Because none of those people
Actually want you to have love
They don’t want to see you giving love
To anyone else, either
They want to see you miserable,
So they can feel better about
Their misery
The only instruction you really need is
Something you already understand:
Don’t do anything that you know
Would break the heart of the person
You love
Even if you are positive that they will
Never find out about it
Unless you are brainless,
You will quickly discover the value
Of animals as friends, and
The benefits of talking to small children
As if they were already adults,
Treating them with respect
And kindness
And you will cut the throat of
Anyone who messes with your
Loved ones, especially if you are
Lucky enough to have that
Very special someone,
Because most people never
Get one of those, because they pursue
Money, prestige, looks, power, and
Cheap thrills, instead
And you will strangle the life out of
Anyone who hurts your friends;
The good ones, that is
Because the bad ones,
You might strangle them, yourself
And you will put a bullet
Through the heads of anyone
Who hurts children or animals
But you cannot save the whole world
This world is a hell,
Broken and irreparable
You are only one person,
And you will go mad
Trying to prevent the infinite,
Torrential, immeasurable
Slew of evil
That befalls all those who dwell
In this miserable, haunted place
So, everyone else…
Fuck ‘em
They’re all
On their own
©2026 Kevin Trent Boswell
