17th Birthday

I turned 17 yesterday
But no one cared

I went to dinner with my family the night before
My dad talked to my uncle about fishing
My mom talked to my aunt about my brother
Who wasn't even there
And I sat there alone

Yesterday morning, three cards arrived
From far away relatives
They all had my name spelled wrong
In three different ways
And one said happy 16th

My dad left for up north
Before I even woke up
He's still not home

Only one friend came to my party
When I invited 4
It was supposed to be a sleepover
With a cool trip planned for today
But she left at 3 this morning
And her mom says she's not coming back for the trip

I asked another friend to come today
But her mom said no
Just like her mom said no to last night too

My allergies kicked in majorly yesterday
And are still bothering me
I feel sick because of them

I received five presents so far
Two books
A special card
A ring
And this iPhone
All great presents
With no emotional backing
Other than that it was just cards with cash
As if money can replace care

I will be spending the rest of the day
Pretending to be happy
As I spend time with people
Who are so different from me
And don't even know it was my birthday
And then I will work on homework
Even though 2 days ago
Was my last day of school
The worst last day ever
Because I'm an IB student

I am 17
And no one cares