5. we fucked up

i’m still in shock
that we lost him.
four months later
and, despite what
he believed, i still
haven’t forgotten
him, i still haven’t
stopped watching
his old videos and
wondering just how
exciting it would be
if we still got to see
his smile, his spirit,
his ability to make
a bad day better.

we fucked up hard.

behind that smile
was a man crying
for us to help him,
and yet we spoke
loudest with those
clown memes, too
many took him as
a joke, thinking for
some reason that
he just wanted the
attention when he
really had 800,000
people checking in.

the world took him
away from us, but
we didn’t make the
situation better, just
seems like the jokes
only proved the point,
and even if he couldn’t
help himself, the memes
weren’t much help, either.
now we’re left mourning a
man who left far too soon,
social media couldn’t leave
its toxicity to the side for a
moment, and all we’re left
with is the memories of a
better, much happier time.

we miss you, desmond.