A Story of Procrastination | Teen Ink

A Story of Procrastination MAG

October 6, 2008
By Anonymous

Eleven thirty-one. It’s eleven ­thirty-one, and I’ve got nothing. Two weeks’ preparation, and it all comes down to this. Gnats swoop around my neck as my pen furiously dances on the paper.

Two hours. Two hours. Two fleeting hours counting down to judgment day. I had two weeks, two weeks, for five hundred words that tell a story, my story, a story of procrastination. People crowd around me, not knowing they are distracting me. My mind is a moth, they are the flame. I fly hopelessly toward them.

A gust of sudden wind rustles my paper, and I look down. Eleven forty-four. I’ve lost precious time! How can I overcome these distractions? Voices endlessly clamor in my mind. The worst thing is, they keep coming … the people, they’re everywhere.

The doors fling open and they rush out of the cafeteria, a sudden storm flooding my workspace like bugs, like caterpillars. They are caterpillars that eat and eat, devouring my blossoming ideas. My ideas are disappearing, leaving me! All ­because of the caterpillars, the people.

The bell. My veins ­con­tract. My heart stops beating for only a second, but it stops. My hands begin to shake uncontrollably. I stand and start walking to fourth period. Fifty-two minutes! I have 52 minutes to write a story, my story, a story of ­procrastination.

My walk quickens to a sprint. I’m running through the halls and I don’t care what they think because they don’t know me. They don’t know my situation. They never could … could they? Have these stressful feelings of frustration and shame ever filled their veins? Has aggravation and disappointment ever pumped through their hearts? Have I been a caterpillar?

Ouch. Wrist cramp! Is this karma for all the years that I’ve been the distraction? Well, the tables have turned all right! Has the distraction become the distracted?

In this sudden epiphany, I arrive at class. Students shuffle around their desks, but the room quickly falls silent. My ideas begin to return and recirculate, safely lodging the wretched caterpillars in their cocoons. My ideas are sprouting. They are growing and I love it.

I love it, but wait … These ideas have been tainted by ­stories filled with laughing, gossip, food, and reality. The characters have changed from knights, queens, and dragons to Benjamin, Angelique, Bianca, Tanner, and Mitchell. Worst of all, the antagonist has become Ernie, fat Ernie! How can I write about someone I hate? My ideas are ruined. They’re tainted and useless to me.

The bell rings. The cocoons are hatching and turning the caterpillars into butterflies. Butterflies that want to stay and live in my stomach, swirling and twirling around inside me. They fill me up. They make me want to vomit, vomit out all of these worthless ideas, and my feelings of shame and frustration.

As I approach the door, I can’t hold them in any longer. I feel the butterflies escaping through every orifice of my body. My pores pour sweat. My veins throb. My mouth spits out words, trying to explain everything I’ve gone through. My dead cat. My participation in extracurricular ideas. My extreme load of classes.

I want to speak, to say anything, but nothing comes. Something. Anything. They’re all excuses anyway, ­excuses that don’t help but delay the inevitability that at the end of this 52-minute class I have a paper due, a paper with metaphors, similes, ­alliteration, brushstrokes, and most importantly with my voice. My voice tells my story, a story of procrastination. All I have left are my poisoned ideas strung together into a story, my story, a story of procrastination.



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This article has 96 comments.


CKsback said...
on May. 1 2010 at 3:38 pm
Haha!!! So funny -- just today I realized that tonight was the deadline for a writing contest, and I had only written 800 words...I have spent all morning writing. :)

on Apr. 9 2010 at 9:06 pm
CaitieCullen BRONZE, Henderson, Nevada
2 articles 0 photos 2 comments
Story of my life :)

on Apr. 9 2010 at 1:28 pm
sunsetclimber BRONZE, Portage, Michigan
3 articles 0 photos 5 comments
i loved it!! everything had so much detail and expression!  I could really visualize what was happening.  loved it.  absolutly :)

on Apr. 9 2010 at 1:04 pm
I personally believe everyone felt that way in life and not all of them can say how well you can put it to words. Thank you for sharing with us how you feel and I hope you keep writting!

on Feb. 24 2010 at 8:47 pm
jack2beanie BRONZE, West Des Moines, Iowa
1 article 0 photos 4 comments
wow this is amazing and it tells a story that everyone can relate to. I always leave things off to the last minute and I am up late into the night on the eve my project or paper or whatever it is I'm procrastinating on is due and the stress grips your brain, turning everything you could possibly write into mush and temporarily shutting down your creative juices.

imawriter? said...
on Feb. 24 2010 at 7:38 pm
It's amazing. I love the way its written, and how it flows. Keep writing, or else I'll fall into a deep sadness! You are good, and I love this piece!

on Feb. 24 2010 at 5:36 pm
magic-esi PLATINUM, Hyde Park, New York
27 articles 0 photos 231 comments

Favorite Quote:
"The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one."
"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if only one remembers to turn on the light."

This is written amazingly, and I love your metaphors. But I've learned that people are inspiration. I feel the same way, though- I don't have enough free time to write! Of course, whenever I get free time, I waste it on the Internet. I should be editing my book right now!

Seriously... Here, help me. Don't write anymore! Then I won't be procrastinating by reading other people's GOOD work while my BAD novel sits there unedited.

on Feb. 24 2010 at 4:27 pm
Weightless2015 GOLD, Roselle, Illinois
17 articles 0 photos 55 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Dream with my eyes open, sleep when I'm dead, love who my heart's chosen, and conquer what lies ahead." -Ryan Follese (lead singer of Hot Chelle Rae)

omg i love this! i luvvv ur use of metaphors and i know sometimes i also feel locked in this world. I absolutely love the ending also.

on Jan. 11 2010 at 8:58 pm
lookingforfreedom SILVER, Edmonton, Other
5 articles 1 photo 15 comments
This is really fantastic! it seems like you know what you're doing with this whole story thing so I suspect that you did really good! so how did you do? did your story turn out well?! I sure hope it did, if not then maybe you should've handed this in! :D

on Jan. 11 2010 at 4:19 pm
Dandelion PLATINUM, Franklin, Massachusetts
20 articles 8 photos 173 comments
Oh, how blissfully I was distracted on teenink .com as I read this wonderful story! Alas, it's time for me to end my reverie and begin my science report.

on Jan. 11 2010 at 8:31 am
Lawsonwrites BRONZE, Elgin, Illinois
1 article 0 photos 2 comments
This story is very good and it is the story of my life. I like the imagry used to show how nervous this person was in paragraph ten. The use of cocoons and butterflies was amazing. I also love the ending, how the ideas are poisoned and just simply strung together to make a big story of precrastination.

on Jan. 11 2010 at 7:10 am
xAllegria BRONZE, Singapore, Other
1 article 2 photos 112 comments

Favorite Quote:
Ça fait tellement du bien d’aimer les gens qu’on aime, que ça finit par faire mal. Je sais pas comment on survit a ça. Non franchement, je sais pas. LOL (laughing out loud) ®, Lola.

Stressful. In a positive way. Nice imagery with the insects...

Rage97 GOLD said...
on Dec. 28 2009 at 11:05 am
Rage97 GOLD, Hughesville, Maryland
16 articles 0 photos 18 comments

Favorite Quote:
" 3 out of 2 people have problems with fractions"
" History will be kind to me, for I intend to write it"

Hey, this is a really good piece of work, and you call my work good no I think you have us confused!!! Love Rage 97

on Dec. 20 2009 at 11:41 am
SilverLuna SILVER, _________, Washington
8 articles 0 photos 229 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Come fairies take me out of this dull world, for I would ride with you upon the wind and dance upon the mountains like a flame.".... W.B. Yeats.
"Flying is learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss." - Douglas Adams

I like this piece alot, you create great imagery with your clever metaphors. I can relate to this entire piece! Awesome job!

on Dec. 20 2009 at 7:32 am
daydreamer:) BRONZE, :), Other
2 articles 0 photos 3 comments
This is one of the best pieces of I've read on TeenInk. The Story of Procrastination is also, coincidentally, the Story of My Life

on Nov. 6 2009 at 9:26 pm
Inkspired PLATINUM, Whitby, Other
26 articles 0 photos 493 comments

Favorite Quote:
"If one will scoff at the study of language, how, save in terms of language, will one scoff?" - Mario Pei
"I write for the same reason I breathe - because if I didn't, I would die." Isaac Asimov

Great! I love the whole story, the repetition, the similes, all the word usage, etc. Very, very very good imagery!

on Nov. 6 2009 at 5:43 pm
jaquetem BRONZE, Cincinnati, Ohio
2 articles 4 photos 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
Get up and Raise your Voice!

...? okay???

on Nov. 6 2009 at 3:46 pm
awesomeaugust GOLD, Boston, Massachusetts
10 articles 0 photos 176 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground"
~Theordore Roosevelt

Wowzer. That was really good (poetic word choice, huh?). I liked all of the metaphrs and similies- they made the article thouroughly enjoyable. I also thought the use of repitition was very effective- i captured the feeling of urgency you feel when you've procrastinated- having only a few words running through your head. Anyway, speaking of procrastination I really should be working on my essay, but really, really good work!

brezec said...
on Oct. 15 2009 at 8:24 pm
This article was full of many amazing metaphors. My favorite one was, “The doors fling open and they rush out of the cafeteria, a sudden storm flooding my workspace like bugs, like caterpillars. They are caterpillars that eat and eat, devouring my blossoming ideas. My ideas are disappearing, leaving me! All ¬because of the caterpillars, the people.” This metaphor paints an accurate picture in my mind. This happens to my all the time. When my brain finally starts churning out some half-decent ideas, someone’s voice sneaks into my head, distracting me and ruining my concentration. I can also relate to the author’s “procrastination” when it comes to projects and papers. Thankfully, I have learned my lesson. Even though it may not seem like the best the best decision to start them early, it pays off in the long run and makes your life a whole lot easier. Overall, it was a great article and had numerous and descriptive metaphors that made the article a joy to read.

on Sep. 29 2009 at 4:01 pm
kennedy_rowzz SILVER, Sterling Heights, Michigan
8 articles 0 photos 35 comments

Favorite Quote:
"we can never truly know who we are"-afi

I loved reading this, it was exellent it really reminded me of myself because i am such a procrastinator its not even funny it always seems like i have more time to do something then i really do.