poetry
1 min
Dreams Become Nightmares
Anika Bhutani
Familiarity. Home.
Isn't it the very constant?
Without which we are all left variable,
The X becoming a cross through everything;
The world starting to blur.
As my head did once,
Working problems on the kitchen table
Unbeknownst to the larger problem.
When algebra turned to alchemy,
The gold memories turned foul,
The iron strength now rusted.
Metals; medals:
The sight of which led all astray,
Even the furthest asteroid, looped into orbit,
Chasing a dream, a nightmare.
Like swimming back but unable to find the shore,
Drowning in the ocean separating landmasses,
Climbing the tree so fast I can't see the roots.
At the price of finding a better life came losing it completely,
Relentlessly working day after day,
But still away from "the future."
We'll light up the woods just to have our names listed in history,
Set fire to the forest rid the paper,
Ensuring we are the only ones printed in the book.
How can we prevent downfall when we're the ones creating it?
Like fuel to the fire,
Sacrificing life to hopefully live it more fully
But whole came with the cost of a hole in our hearts.
For a fireplace can only remain in a home
So long as the flame is tame,
So long as the want for fame doesn't allow it to burn brighter,
Trampling each other for gain.
For what is blindness but not being able to see?
What is gazing at the sun but a step to disaster?
What is pride but the fall of every man?
Exposed to exuberance, wanting more,
The result is the barge of dead in the river,
Teetering on the edge of a knife.
The very knife that severed me from the string
Tied back to the first breath,
The first dream.
The world before this one,
The world left behind.
I sailed across the sea, and when I look back, it is too late.
It is all gone.
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