| be congenial . . . always let the other person go ahead of you in line. smile when your friend is promoted and you are stuck licking envelopes. bite your lip when your friends talk about things such as happiness and love. read more poetry. rent sappy movies and watch them when you're home alone, allowing yourself to cry during all the pitiful parts. attain some sort of balance--be one person here, another person there. force down the bile that attempts to climb your throat whenever you walk past a certain someone. deny your inner emotions. tell yourself that you are stronger than this, that you can conquer all things, even sorrow.
you won't die inside because there is nothing inside of you. (tell yourself this over and over again. write it on that postcard of bermuda that your aunt sent you and tape it to the refrigerator.) clasp a glass with your shaking hands and refuse to lose. you will. you can. you have. soon you won't even have to try. soon you won't even have to pretend. you can look at the most heart-wrenching scene and not even blink now. death is nothing. lost love is only a fool's wasted time.
you have arrived. (pat yourself on the back and don't forget to laugh.)
andneverevereverremember | 
