4:30

 

4:30 PM

For some strange reason, she always showed up at this time.

I could tell by the position of the sun over our heads,

and the smile on the faces of the shadows it had forged of us.

For the first time in a long time, only one shadow was present,

at 4:40 PM,

and he wasn't smiling.

I knew outright that something was off.

All the conversations from the last few days began playing back in my head.

4:50 PM,

That was when it  hit me; she was saying goodbye.

The many times she kept asking how my life will be without her.

How she'd randomly whisper "I'll miss you"

And how she'd ask that I repeat the same silly joke so she doesn't forget it.

How dumb I was to have not seen the signs.

I had plans for her,

But a part of me always knew she was smarter.

The plans she had for herself, far outweighed what anyone else could give her.

And from the way she smiled when I spoke of my plans, 

I could loudly hear her silence say "Ha! you naive little man".

Lo, I was not sad; I wasn't even scared for her

As a matter of fact, I was elated.

She deserved more than life out here could ever give her.

I spent that evening rearranging my dreams,

Hoping I'll someday have the courage to run away too,

While I imagined how great our lives will turn out,

With or without each other

And I whispered in the direction of the wind,

Trusting the possibility of her hearing this message;

"Wherever you are Eaglet, keep flying!"

5:00 PM!

Photo by Diana Simumpande on Unsplash

FIGURE OF PEACH

 I had wishes,

wishes that someday, I'd grow deaf to the voice of society;

wishes that someday, the universe would align to my tune and offer me three wishes.

Wishes to simply be happy with me.

I kept these wishes in a piggy bank,

hoping that someday, they may grow to catch up with the pace of the days.

Hoping for the awakening I knew would never come.

But one-day, I woke up;

I woke up and I showed up.

I showed up unapologetically with big boobs in no bra,

resting on my not-your-regular belly.

I showed up with these sharp nipples piercing through my gown.

With extra flesh hanging down my triceps,

 and inflated cheeks as air sacs,

I showed up with all 32 of my dents beneath the spotlight.

I took centre stage of the world and danced offbeat,

in a realm of my own, connected to my highest self.

And even when the music stopped, 

I could not stop me from dancing.

Twas the day I accepted who I was.

Twas the day I learnt to love myself.

Twas the happiest day of my life.

Twas the game changer!

Photo by Priscilla Fraire on Unsplash

ARCHITECTS OF MY LIFE

 

They read to me stories of great men.

They said, "if you want to be happy, you have to be like them".

They lighted flames on the sides of a path,

and called it mine, without my consent.

They said, "you cannot walk like that".

They said, "you need to talk like this".

They painted a picture of me, donned in the finest, 

hanged it on the walls of their consciousness and called it Tomorrow.

My Tomorrow!

They said if I want to be happy, I have to look like that

I said "my happy friend looks different".

They said "you cannot be like him".

They said "he's good for nothing".

Well I want to be good, for nothing more do I desire,

above laying half naked far away on a lonely beach,

eavesdropping on innuendos sent ashore by the tender waves,

while I wait for the sun to set,

Everyday! 

AS A LIAR...

As a liar,

make me an advocate of the truth.

Have me be the mouthpiece that tells of lies' destruction.

For I have at firsthand, 

seen the monsters my very actions have notched.

I have crawled harmlessly into harmonious places 

and inspired chaos.

Like a chameleon, I too have taken lives,

by the action of my tongue.

I have dug graves with utterances,

and buried Truth alive.

And if Truth does resurrect, 

my abode shall be where i first put him.

As a liar, 

I am become my own nemesis.

As a liar, 

etch upon my tombstone,

"Truth is such a delight".