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Time and Tide - "Bargaining" | Penana
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Time and Tide
ISSUE #15
Author: Viktoria Fyodorova
Time and Tide
Author: Viktoria Fyodorova
ISSUE #15
"Bargaining"
No Plagiarism!ig8mYHSKULfW0ThjNa7gposted on PＥNAＮＡ

Why?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtRm2itNv3F

Why was it him?

Why did the world take my parents’

only biological child?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdRMoEY4jCK

Why wasn’t it me?

I have sinned so much in the past few years,

to the point that I have lost track

of all the horrible things

I have done.

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe7fGfsVP13

Why was my brother the one punished

and not me?

Why did this have to happen so close to his

32nd birthday?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu1nnTgLyOH

After everything he has been through,

this is how the world repays him for

overcoming his

alcoholism?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt5BwDg15Iw

Why is the world such a cruel place?

Why is there just as much good in the world

as there is evil?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWYoTEuJmej

Why were Mom and I the last people

he talked to?

Why did he die

only 20 minutes after getting off the phone with us?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqTJlrkDYrs

Why did he accept those drugs from someone?

a straight-up murderer?

on the street?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0kgfBg9WeA

Why am I still here?

Why did I survive those 24 hours

on the doorstep of the orphanage

in frigid Russia,

with only a blanket and crib to guide me?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQNIhue1wtM

Why,

out of all the orphans,

did my adopted parents

choose

me?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDSTwXY2JHL

Why did my brother want a little sister?

I was a chubby, little thing—

severely malnourished—

and now I struggle with anxiety.

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡElygkL474h

Why is grief so

mentally and physically exhausting?

Why are there so many people

who support us?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsjjQ5wXRxF

Is this really what love is all about?

Is that all grief is?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡloEECg5HkX

Why am I down here

and not with my family during this time of mourning?

Why did I come back to school

only a week after the tragedy?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcLNPMGANWh

Why am I so desperate to succeed,

considering the current circumstances?

25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKsyIXuxHt7

Most importantly...

What is the true meaning of this anomaly

that we call “life”?

216.73.216.70

ns216.73.216.70da2
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Time and Tide
Poetry
Adventure
Short Story
Last updated: Jun 3, 2026
Total word count: 3,470
Total reading time: 16 Minutes
adventure magic comingofage college timetravel warriors poetrycollection foundfamily animals destiny lifelessons prose diversity nostalgia collegestudents symbolism writingchallenge undiscovered schoolassingment wildcard
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