LTE: A poem by local 13 year old – We Are Ruining the World

We Are Ruining the World Poem by Rebekkah Siegelehim, Age 13
Did you have a phone in elementary school?
Maybe in fourth or fifth grade, but as a little kid, probably not
You must have thought that all the big kids with phones were so cool, being able to play games whenever they wanted
But now your younger siblings are getting phones
Because the government won’t ban guns
So your parents have to make sure every child has a phone
Not for playing games
But to text them I love you from underneath a desk if the time comes
Although that “if” is beginning to become a “when”
Teachers are quitting jobs they love because they’re so scared of what could happen
But hey, it’s our second amendment right, so let’s overwork the remaining ones instead
Because our two-hundred-and-something year old rights are way more important than our lives and mental health
Each generation thinks they’ll be the saviors, end this phase
But it’s not a phase
Because with every generation there are heartless, senseless people who are willing to take the lives of children to bring them sick, twisted, joy
With every generation, more will be added to the statistics
Our right to bear arms should be about little girls showing their shoulders and not getting dress-coded, not the amount of guns we’re entitled to
So instead of banning guns, let’s fight fire with fire
Hey, that’s an idea!
Give every teacher a piece of fire hose to put on their hinges for if the time comes 
When the time comes
When I was in kindergarten, I was learning how to color inside the lines
Now, kindergartners are learning the ALICE protocol
In elementary school, I wouldn’t pay attention to lessons to stare at clouds
Now, I’m staring at what I predict would be the quickest hiding spot to get to and things I could use to protect myself
I run to the bathroom, thinking “what if I’m in the halls when something happens?”
But hey, we can’t take away a very necessary amendment, so we’ll just go over the lockdown procedures one more time
There are lyrics of songs that shouldn’t be relatable but are
There are parents scared to send their kids to school because of threats
But hey, those kids are just statistics, so let’s keep the guns around, it’ll die down in a few weeks Is the government even addressing these things?
All I hear about them is on the news and announcements, never once addressed by people in power
Out of all ten amendments in the Bill of Rights, our second is the right to bear arms
So school shootings are second to all the other issues
So guns are our right as citizens
But shouldn’t our safety and wellbeing also be our right?