Don’t Count Me Out Poem by Fab Ricciardi

You’ve tried,
Lord knows you’ve tried
You’ve done your best, but I’m still standing
And
After all is said and done, that’s where I’ll be

Still standing.

Don’ t ask me how I do it
How I manage not to let anything bother me

Nothing bothers me, except the thought
That there are so many like you
Who want so much to count me out.

Why do you care about what happens to me?

Don’t you have your own life
To worry about, to cry about?
Don’t you have your own dreams?

Why do you let me bother you so much?

Why am I so important to your life
That you must talk about me all the time
Whether good or bad
Whether happy or sad?

Why do you so anxiously wait for me to fail?
Wait to see me get knocked down?

I don’t know much, but
This I know
I don’t really want to disappoint you
Nothing will ever bring me down.

I’ve been hit hard, but I don’t bruise easily
I don’t really feel much pain anymore
So
Take your best shot, but please…

Don’t count me out.