absence is a song i know too well.

by prasanna   May 21, 2021


i am not whole.

i lived my life in fragments –

i can neatly categorize my life before-you,
and after-you. but that’s not the whole truth,
i always find myself somewhere in the middle,
a foot planted firmly on either side,
i am a crisis crossing the karman line.
you’re right there in grasp, but i know it’s
an optical illusion that i fell for
far too many times. i still don’t have
the words to neatly describe all of this.

one day, far in the future,
i will be at peace, feeding cold fruit
to my niece, and the words will come
flooding in. you will be out of reach,
but this time i’ll shuffle my feet into
the after-you fragment, and won’t
look back.

maybe.

4


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Latest Comments

  • 3 years ago

    by Keira Pickard

    This is beautifully written. I'm not sure if it was purposeful, but I loved the subtle rhymes in

    a foot planted firmly on either side
    i am a crisis crossing the karma line.

    I liked the title and the metaphor in it of comparing absence to a song. As well as that, the full stop at the end of it adds a note of finality and almost relent.
    The way you don't capitalize letters makes the text look so delicate, and also how you present it, with gaps between certain lines and/or stanzas, like a pause.
    It's so sad, but mesmerisingly written. I loved the uncertain way you finished it, as it was like a sigh.
    Absolutely excellent:)

  • 3 years ago

    by Keira Pickard

    Double post

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