Poetry submission: Victoria Williams

Daily Routine

Disorder. Wake up. Stretch. 100 jumping jacks. 75 crunches. 50 push ups. 25 lunges. 1 minute plank. 3 mile run. Weigh yourself. Shower. Make oatmeal. Throw away half. Eat half of that half. Weigh yourself again. Toss out the rest. Lie. Ride bike to gas station. Buy a Monster. 75.183 calories. Go to school. Lie. Nap in the library at lunch. Ride bike home. Watch the Food Network. 1 mile run. 5 minutes of stairs. Workout Video. Lie. Go Home. Eat Dinner. 398.975 calories. Take a nap. Go to Work. Drink a caloric Red Bull. Cry. Lie. Go Home. Run a lap around the house. Go inside. Get the laptop. Read food blogs. Read Weight-loss blogs. Join a fasting group. Final weigh-in of the day. Cry some more. Lie to yourself. Pass out. Repeat. Die.

Order. Wake up. Look in the mirror. Smile. Look away. Make oatmeal. Hold spoon over trash. Retract hand. Eat half. Hesitate. Breathe. Eat other half of oatmeal. Look in mirror. Shake head. Unknown caloric content. Go to school. No Monster. Talk to friends. Smile. Eat lunch with friends. Go to the bathroom. Cry. Stand. Talk to friends. No lies. Go Home. Throw away scale. Watch Disney Channel. Grab stomach. Be okay. Eat dinner. Laugh with family. Tease little sister. Don’t think about calories. Walk to the ice cream shop with a friend. Panic. Cry. Hopeless…Calm down. Split a small cup. Ignore calories. Laugh. No calories. It’s going to be okay. Breathe. Talk. Be Happy. Go to bed. Repeat. Live.