My Name Is Zach

There has been a pic floating around on Facebook lately, of a meth user.  It displays the effects of meth on thie user over a four year period.  Its pretty drastic.  More so, there is a poem that accompanies the picture, which personifies meth and its effects on the user.  Its pretty decent, though thoroughly depressing.  I decided to write a retort to this poem, as I have struggled with the effects of meth addiction within my family.  The thing about meth addiction is that no matter how bad the users end up, those that love them get it worse.  The transition meth users go through is nothing short of terrifying to witness.


My name is Zach
And you know who I am
I was the kid
Whom you could not land

Your highs and seduction
Meant nothing to me
I am not your fool
There is nothing free

As I watched all around me
My family went down
And I stood resolutely
Holding my ground

I watched as you started
With my sister Kelly
And then proceeded to take
Everything from me

I watched as it spread
From my sisters to brothers
It seemed every day
You took another

My dad and role-models
All swept away
My nieces and nephews
Lost in the fray

My home was destroyed
That life brought to a close
There was nothing to say
"And so it goes"

So I stood with conviction
Over my dead family
And I took back
What meant most to me

I salvaged the wreckage
Saving what was good
Protecting our youngest
The best I could

I cut the dead branches
I pruned the diseased
I did what was needed
With no choice but to lead

And for all of the effort
You spent ripping apart
Our spirit took shelter
Inside my heart

I won this game
One of the few who can say
I warded off everything
You could throw my way

My name is Zach
And I'm most fuckin' blessed
I'll save you the embarrassment
'Cause you know the rest