today, we are tired-
pastel pink tutus don’t suit our mood,
today, our wings will
wrinkle, and sloth besides freshly branded
birthmarks- today, we won’t
caress, we will acknowledge
that the cacophony of crying
hurts, that listen to it long enough
and every shriek becomes a reminder of
getting an ear piercing for
the first time, and how lovesickness often
acts as a cure. but today,
we are tired of being lovesick-
of being composed silverware off which
generations are fed. this bitter
helplessness won’t be detained
by artificial sweetener now. please
accept that perfumed sugar stings,
ungratefulness even more. we won’t
always be there to ward off corporate
toothfaeries who come to steal
milk doused dreams, we won’t
be complacent anymore- in feeding
them lies while we sing them to bed,
in muzzled phonetics, in vibrant
strokes not within a prescribed outline. we
are tired of being rainbowed cement that
keeps a fragile imagination from toppling. we
are tired of being forgotten, we
are tired of witnessing the immortality of
broken bones from beyond a shrinking obscura.
today,
we are tired of cleaning up after your mess,
our wands fail to do justice to disbelief.
Hetvi (she/her) is an undergraduate student (math major), and the co-founder of hariandhetu - a newsletter devoted to the quirks of literature and art. Her work has been featured by a few small publications, including The Narrow Road Journal and Mellom Press. Hetvi's based in India and she can be found on Twitter @vuisnotabot. She hopes you have a quirky day.