By SIMONE WILSON – Bed Stuy Patch
The Hasidic community of Crown Heights, Brooklyn, has watched one of its daughters shoot to international fame over the course of a week.
It all started when Chanie Gorkin, who is apparently an 11th grader at Beth Rivkah High School in Crown Heights, submitted a clever poem called “Worst Day Ever?” to PoetryNation.com.
The poem reads:
Today was the absolute worst day ever
And don’t try to convince me that
There’s something good in every day
Because, when you take a closer look,
This world is a pretty evil place.
Even if
Some goodness does shine through once in a while
Satisfaction and happiness don’t last.
And it’s not true that
It’s all in the mind and heart
Because
True happiness can be attained
Only if one’s surroundings are good
It’s not true that good exists
I’m sure you can agree that
The reality
Creates
My attitude
It’s all beyond my control
And you’ll never in a million years hear me say
Today was a very good day
Now read it from bottom to top, the other way,
And see what I really feel about my day.
After the poetry site posted Gorkin’s submission online, it quickly made its way across the Atlantic.
Mashable reports that London resident Ronnie Joice “spotted the poem tacked to the wall of a bar in North London,” then posted it to social media.
Her piece has since become a viral sensation.
Gorkin’s brother, Shimon, posted a news story about his sister’s poem on Facebook. “That’s my sister!” he wrote. (Gorkin herself does not appear to have a Facebook account, likely because her all-girls school doesn’t allow it.)
“So, my daughter Chanie wrote this poem last fall as a school assignment and submitted it to Poetry Nation,” wrote her dad, Baruch, in a post of his own. “In the last few days the thing went totally viral, apparently after being pinned up on a wall of a [London] bar… “
Gorkin has been mentioned in quite a few Crown Heights newsletters and announcements over the years, and her creativity seems to have amassed a fan base within her own community, as well.
Salvador Litvak, who blogs as The Accidental Talmudist, calls the poem a “spectacular meditation by Chanie Gorkin of Crown Heights, Brooklyn.”
We’ve reached out to Gorkin and her family to see how they’re handling all this love and admiration flooding in from around the world.
b-o-b-b-y bobby is a cutie pie 😉
Best waitress ever!!!!!!!!
You Lubavitchers have smart children!
Brilliant!!!
That’s amazing
/such a special creation — and to think that it was written by such a young poet makes it even more incredible. Many thanks for sharing.
this poem was printed with Chanie Gorkin as author in the Nissan/Pesach issue of the N’shei Chabad Newsletter.
G-d has given you a gift. May you use this gift to help your family, Am Yisrael, and the world.
Perhaps the following thought was intended in the poem, but it’s good to reveal it: There is a deep idea in the fact that the poem is positive from below to above. According to Chassidus, like Yitzchok Avinu’s service to Hashem was to dig wells, which signifies revealing the G-dly spark in everything, likewise it is with this poem. The way that things appear from above most of the time is negative, because Hashem’s ways are above our understanding. However, we can and must reveal the good hidden in everything as they are in their true essence, from below to… Read more »
…you got a good grade on this!
GO CHANIE!!
CHANIE!!!!!!!! I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!
CHANIE’S GETTING FAMOUS… 😉
thank you ! it is so inspiring,,i have seen that on my face book page and not even knowing it was made by our girl!!!! so proud of you!
11th grade
wow
WOW!!!! I couldn’t have said it better myself!!!
go to a great college and come back and give those great skills over to the girls at Bais Rivka
that is so cool! i might make my own sometime
Great message with unique delivery . Well done 👍🏻😃
The ripple effect of a smart mind
Is so beautiful to not deny of a kind
May we merit to see many more inspirational growth spoken
For this is really the true token
Chanie its an amazing poem! But don’t stop there keep on getting better at writting until no one cant stop talking about you!
Love,
Love this poem girl
Teachings from The Lubavitcher Rebbe
I agree we love u Chani
See if you can use your new found fame to get a full scholarship from a college to major in English literature or poetry
wow!!!!!!!!!!!
ur awsome
sooo cool !!!
love it !!!!
😉
It reminds me of going to school and then leaving school. great job. From a 4th grade student
I thought it said an 11 year old wrote it… But still I must to say that you are very smart and I, being one who is quick to criticize, read it over again and I agree with you 100%!!
Well done! Great thinking!
I’m proud to say I’m spending the summer with you. Awesome job girl!!
so so beautiful! I was moved to tears!!
Very impressive.
On 9gag 2 days ago. That’s really viral.
Look up and its good, look down and its not so good.
lets try to to not look down at people, occurrences and whatever we come across, and lets try to always look up! upwards.
Moshiach now!
That is a great prospective!
go waitress
awesome chanie! I read the origional on paper!!!
Beautiful. It reminds me of techniques used by the paytanim. I don’t know Chani, but I wish her continued inspiration & creativity for many, healthy years. We need new paytanim!
Good job Chanie! Keep making a Kiddush Hashem! We’re proud of you!
Both the message and the format of delivering it.
There she’s put two In one! What a peice of work.
That is real talent, Chanie!
i love the way its readable from top to bottom and from bottom to top
that was unbelievable!!!!
I’m sure she is inspired by her wonderful amazing Mother!
Amazing principal!
SO CREATIVE .
AMAZING JOB.
NEVER WOULD OF THOUGHT ABOUT DOING THAT
SO CREATIVE
SPEAKS FROM THE HEART!
What an amazing and mature outlook on life. Kol Hakavod. Keep it up!
I love this poem!!
its amazing!!
Wowww really admirable young lady. Had me choked up. So so trueeee life is what we make of it 100% your an amazing girl !!!
So mature and smart!
I posted it on FB without realizing who wrote it.