loss

have i lost
all the things
that made me me 

including you? 

Nothing

days strung together

tightly, like nylon on a guitar 

fingers strumming 

fret after fret 

slightly out of tune 

time goes by 

fingers drumming 

on a table, waiting 

for another moment to go by 

another insignificant nothing 

an open window 

a bee buzzing

drawing zigzag patterns  

seeking sweet, sweet nectar 

but this room is empty 

 

a humid evening

​dragonflies humming 

the air heavy, holding back  

promises of something 

that's not going to happen today 

a sky full of stars

a cricket chirping  

smoke rises in circles  

fading into the darkness 

that was today 

trapped

trapped in a constant 

existential crisis

trapped by thoughts 

that run amok

trapped when you can't just

sit and be 

trapped when you're asked

to just sit and be 

trapped by finances

trapped by circumstances

trapped by conference calls 

trapped by unending bills 

trapped in an office

strapped to a chair

trapped by a routine

and colour-coded lists

trapped by priorities 

trapped by clock, alarms, phones

beep beep, ping ping

tick tick, ring ring 

trapped by time 

there's too much

or there's too less

hurry up, slow down, stand up, sit down 

trapped by low energy levels

trapped by inadequate vitamins

trapped by an excess energy

that keeps you up at night 

trapped in a meeting

trapped at a party 

trapped when home alone

trapped in a crowd 

trapped because of the rain

trapped because it's too hot

trapped in the middle of nowhere

there's nobody to blame 

trapped under a rock 

predators wait and watch

trapped behind walls 

the sharks are all inside 

trapped by a wrong choice

trapped because you didn't get to choose  

trapped when the alternative is worse

frying pan or fire? it's all the same  

trapped by decisions 

trapped by impulsiveness

trapped because it was too late

when you finally made up your mind 

trapped when you're too sensitive

trapped when you're completely numb

trapped when you don't know what to say 

trapped when nobody hears your words 

trapped by a wheelchair

trapped by an unyielding mind 

trapped by grudges and arguments past

trapped by your own ungratefulness 

trapped by bad company

trapped by someone else's fault 

trapped by the guilt of 

unconditional love and kindness

trapped by undiscovered talents

trapped by lost opportunities

trapped by somebody else at the finish line

trapped because you won, all too soon

trapped by likes and shares

trapped by expectations

trapped by what people think of you 

trapped by smileys and forwards 

trapped by the pressure

you put on yourself

trapped because you can't let go 

trapped because you're trying too hard 

trapped by unrealized potential 

trapped because you're unnoticed

trapped when you're a somebody 

trapped when you're in the newspapers 

trapped by airport looks

trapped by concealers and eyeliners

trapped because you're too plain 

trapped by how you look, what you wear 

trapped because of unfair laws

trapped by unreasonable rules 

trapped because of bias, prejudice

trapped at immigration, tracked, tagged

trapped by the scrutiny of the media

trapped by the opinions of anybodys 

trapped by insecurities

and the people who feed off them

trapped by helplessness

trapped when you want to 

do so much more, but you can't 

because you're trapped, stuck, confined

trapped by something on TV

trapped by a pill you can't stop taking

trapped by liquids that go down easily 

trapped because you can't say no 

trapped by fate

trapped by temptation 

trapped by your own morality 

trapped by lies, trapped by honesty 

trapped because you look too old

trapped because you look too young

trapped by 'omg youve put on so much weight'

trapped by 'when was the last time you ate?' 

trapped by boundaries 

trapped because you're limited

trapped because you're only 

something in a container

trapped because you don't matter 

in the enormity of the universe 

trapped because you're an inconsequential speck

hardly capable of moving mountains

trapped by restlessness

a desperate, wanting, 

fiery, seeking soul

stifled inside your body 

 

but wait oh look 

a window of escape

a train ticket, an open field 

a dog licking your face

a tiny hand in yours

a note of appreciation

a winding road through 

that unbudging mountain

a warm embrace

a snail on a leaf 

a changing season

something beautiful, beyond reason

trapped between the 

beginning and the end

trapped by the fact that

this is all we know

who knows what's gone before 

and what will come after 

maybe this is our shot at freedom

indispensable

so hard I try
to make myself indispensable
so easily
you dismiss me

happy

how willing we are to settle for "happy"
what a peculiar choice to make

when we can feel ecstatic
when we can feel breathtaking exhilaration
when we can feel life-affirming hope

when we can feel inexplicable angst
when we can feel numbing pain
when we can feel so hopelessly in love

and yet we want to settle
for a measly little slice of happy

liberation

aren't we all 

a bit like caged beasts 

confined by closed spaces

but equally lost in the endless vastness

bound by 

all that we know

and dwarfed by the 

things we don't

who knows what 

what true freedom is

or liberation  

if it exists at all 

it must be in finding a purpose

all consuming

a something that keeps you alive 

chase

if the thrill of the chase
is better than the catch 
then one has to keep running 

Distance

​I've seen the most beautiful sunsets

from rooftops, trains and window seats

Streaks of blood that slowly soak up the sky

spreading into a gentle wash on a watercolour canvas

I've seen birds journey home in geometric patterns

Their cries filling the evening air

Mingled with the sounds of kids playing street cricket 

A strangely chaotic yet calming dusk

I've seen the sun lower itself below the city skyline

Disappearing bit by bit, through electricity wires 

Leaving an empty sky, save a kite here and there

And maybe an early moon

I've seen your eyes reflect my thoughts

And I want to share this little space, this slot of time, with you 

Maybe this sunset, maybe a million 

If only time were that generous

Stand with me on the terrace of this house

Watch the evening birds make their way home

Stay with me in this beautiful moment

Even as it disappears bit by bit

Into a something we will remember once in a while

In our own separate worlds 

As we watch, from rooftops, trains and window seats 

The sun melt away 

the distance between us  ​