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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!yAx3ZOilCFP9jtwIjQbqposted on PＥNAＮＡ

Why?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUjR10qJbbu

Why was it him?

Why did the world take my parents’

only biological child?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8aMNiuWD9i

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.

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKmxM6xIwLv

Why was my brother the one punished

and not me?

Why did this have to happen so close to his

32nd birthday?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk75JB61vnE

After everything he has been through,

this is how the world repays him for

overcoming his

alcoholism?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFXAztY2Pop

Why is the world such a cruel place?

Why is there just as much good in the world

as there is evil?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG3Yoi38FPe

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?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOqxrcFjSWm

Why did he accept those drugs from someone?

a straight-up murderer?

on the street?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLNTrUcSsI0

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?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBYJxMteJAb

Why,

out of all the orphans,

did my adopted parents

choose

me?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx4Py1ZszFX

Why did my brother want a little sister?

I was a chubby, little thing—

severely malnourished—

and now I struggle with anxiety.

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzutmHISmbs

Why is grief so

mentally and physically exhausting?

Why are there so many people

who support us?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAW1r7lJ5cJ

Is this really what love is all about?

Is that all grief is?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlv49R13YCz

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?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUfytHr6m5r

Why am I so desperate to succeed,

considering the current circumstances?

26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuadvtZlf9l

Most importantly...

What is the true meaning of this anomaly

that we call “life”?

216.73.216.86

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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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