Poetry

By Hector Lopez Jaime any job will try you it’ll run you down & force you to lick boots or worse kiss asses: neither flavor is pleasant or easily erased from the palate so you’re left with the options of smoking or drinking the horrid taste into nothingness for the day those mornings that follow are the worst on this particularly bad morn the store manager & his assistant are reviewing some overnight security cams & see something so terrible, so shocking the whole store canno

By Airy Magic I was happy in my bubble Though a soft one, It was made of ego and illusions, And that was the actual trouble. One day, someone poked it gently, But also knew how to hold Me safe, And just let me flow.. The river of tears Carried the broken pieces Of crushed ego, Delusions, illusions, and false peace. I realised I wasn't What I felt or thought.. The mind went silent, Unable to process the emotional lot. The locked heart broke open, Flooded emotions came, Ashore

By Airy Magic One truth, many perspectives. What is yours? Or are you settling for Others’ views, others’ versions? Realise your own. Strip off those Survival jackets Donned to fit in. All the fears You give in to, consume Voraciously—just to Satiate that unending hunger. The acquired behaviours, Patterns, Made custom-fit So you don’t stand out... 'Coz they said One must follow Others and belong. Never encouraged to think apart. Let go..Surrender. Let go of these layers. For

By Airy Magic We came from stars, but forgot our way… Playing different roles every single day. A soul in disguise donned a costume right We cry, laugh, and lie, sometimes even fight. Are we forgetting to remember? Or do we remember that we forget the hack… While awareness watches from the back? In the hustle, the bustle, I hope we pause… recall that we are the divine light, cosmic con artists, after all. By Airy Magic

By Airy Magic A storm occurred, My tendrils swayed.. They met your steady branches, A calm where I once frayed. I curled onto you, Safe in your grace. And together we climbed, A higher place. But when the gusts came, They tore me apart.. Broken and scattered, With a hollow heart. I searched for shelter, Thought I'd lost you then.. We never met again... Yet, something stayed true. Our roots had touched, And somehow, they grew. Beneath the surface, Where no eyes see, We were al

By Airy Magic Born as a seed, Nurtured by love and safety, I sprouted tender hands.. But soon got covered in the dust of society. Rules & opinions, claiming their might quietly. Still, I grew, believing I had to be Like the leaves..high, rustling, free. I drank the raindrops of knowledge, Soaked in the light within. Swayed in winds of joy, Stooped in storms when low.. And then, I blossomed. I longed to be like the tree, strong and bold, That stood tall and knew how to hold. B

By Airy Magic What will you do? The day you realise You weren’t the one Making choices you called your own? The wild thoughts you silenced to belong, Just to fit into someone’s good books. The emotions you buried — Because apparently, You're supposed to always wear a positive outlook. The self-talk you avoided, Afraid it’d show what you tried to overlook. Who are you really? Are you your thoughts? Or the body and mind Knotted up over time? What use is liberation after death I

By Airy Magic I kept analysing, figuring— Every move my game of life threw. Sharpening my mind, using logic, Gathering data, clues, and truths. I made the mind my only hero— The heart went quiet, As if declared a zero. It numbed me… I never cried. Pain and grief were first analysed, But never truly felt. They built a mountain— Of sorrow, suppressed emotion, and weight. Until one day, a gentle soul Held up a mirror— I had dimmed, Lost my shimmer. Confused, I walked for miles,

By Airy Magic To my most talkative friend -Mind. I know you always wanted to keep me safe. Every time there was a question, You rushed first to find the answers..for I was your fav. You were swift, never did you rest. Whenever my eyes saw something new, You went running to get a few labels too. Don’t you get tired… phew! It’s fine if I feel happy without naming the new. Every time I wanted to experience, You came with your caution list. You reminded me how I once had a fall,

By Airy Magic I talk to a lot of people.. or should I say, minds. Where I think they’ll understand, my words just hit the walls they’ve built to guard their hearts.. and bounce off their minds. The mind so easy to be nudged, labels, reacts, and judges. What was meant to be taken in gets thrown out - like trash in a bin. I was right there, doing all of this, for yes, I’d hardened myself. I wanted to be the one guarding me, too scared of falling apart, feeling deep.. for that w

By Airy Magic The movie of my life, Started from nothing. I put on clothes of etiquette.. Manners, masks, conditioning. Rode the roller coaster Of joy, grief, and pain. Love came dressed as A mirror, with a different name. He showed me parts of me I’d buried underneath, Beneath the comfort Of survival’s sheath. It wasn't easy, though To feel the wounds I used to ignore. Grief and pain circled back, But I used awareness as a hack. My duties stayed the same, The roles I played,

By Jhanvi Latheesh   I baked a muffin late last night,            With sprinkles, glue and dynamite."            I followed Grandma’s ancient text,            But… maybe flipped two pages next.            I stirred in socks (they smelled of cheese),            Then added syrup from the trees.            Some jellybeans and ping-pong balls—            And whispers from the haunted halls.            It bubbled. Boiled. Began to quake!            The oven danced and did the snak

By Finn Wagner Experimentation is a warning confined to this ring on my finger as I write. The last eight minutes of light from the sun, now fallen into shadow, as it tries to cry out. It pleads for its last breath to be this warning. But the calls went unanswered so the streets kept Jostling– the businessmen bribing; beggars begging; and the hopers hoping for an end– in time, they all got what they wanted: To start anew on this uninhabitable wasteland, so the innovations can

By Finn Wagner What you have heard of thirst is true. My body is at war with itself. You may call it limerence, the way the waves crest but never break. I call it nostalgia–wishing and waiting; a well where water has yet to taste so good again. It sloped my chin as I chugged. I wonder if that was the most integral part of the experience. My throat. It is dry with its cracks. And the water is no remedy. I chuckle. What you have heard of war is true, too. By Finn Wagner

By Finn Wagner the clouds speak to me through rhythmic tapping droplets on my open palm what was She saying on the night i was welcomed by mother’s soft hold when the speckles spit against the hospital’s pane? words i can’t yet speak maybe, She can speak the native tongue of children before language takes its hold to confine them. that is the dialect the body knows best so i now wiser in my hands can trace these lines of water splashing. By Finn Wagner

By Finn Wagner Silence screams softest when the begging snow cannot crunch without some help my steps aid us both, at least for now. Looking back, the path breaks our gaze first. For the wind, cold and convicted brings displaced snow, each flake unique enough to sting eyes, dry and pleading for remorse. Careless is the wind. Remorse is reserved for those fortunate enough to live and look back. The little ice bits are hostile to my regrets worn proud on my skin, purple takes t

By Finn Wagner to be viewed through aging eyes. please let them relax and kiss my body, wrinkled and withering as the set sun once did. Shaky hands are allowed to settle here and they will be young for a moment. By Finn Wagner

By Finn Wagner Angles made of snow, divot upon a fresh sheet, daft Doe with upturned lips, a quiver sends a beating twitch down my spine. On the left, two birds tweet and leave snowy swirls when they float into white pillowy billows, now fallen like dusk. Squeeze tight, and winters proof sifts through frigid fingers. Fall back into its embrace and feel cold turn warm off swelling earlobes. A sweet smile sparkles and catches my eye. Giggles spill across this bed Mother Nature

By Safa Mahmood The Moon I sit on the shore to see the moon tonight, but the red crescent hangs in a frown. I tilt my head & ask, ‘is everything all right?’ ‘I never imagined you letting me down.’ My world silences, the waves retreat, the sand disappears from under my feet. ‘I did not mean to neglect you,’ I weep beneath the sneering sky, ‘I still love you so. my love is true.’ My beloved moon then begins to cry. ‘Now you walk hurriedly by,’ it says, ‘sometimes not looking up

By Safa Mahmood I was neck-deep in melancholy today . . . until I heard the clouds above me say that I am not alone, then drop after drop they cried with me until I would stop. Rain replaced the tears on my cheeks, I can still hear how sweetly it speaks: ( patter ) everything ( tap ) up there ( patter ) ( tap ) is feeling ( patter ) for you ( tap, patter ). When I showed winter my skin, the many raindrops on my hand felt like pins, but I liked the momentary numbness (as I lik