<i can relate>

by Ansh Tripathi

May 05, 2022


Table of Contents

  1. Foreword
  2. Questions
  3. What have you done?
  4. When things get rough…
  5. Silence
  6. Emptiness
  7. The truth
  8. A lie
  9. Afterword

Foreword

There was a kid. This kid was a fun kid (sometimes). This kid was a kind kid (sometimes). This kid had a problem (sometimes). They didn't know about it; better said, they didn’t acknowledge it.

People said "you should get help" followed by "I'm serious," but it always entered from one ear and left the other. It was now that the kid was reflecting that they knew something was wrong. The kid had never had the feelings that they had the past few months. They didn't know what to do with every single emotion they were feeling. They didn't know how to tell anybody that something was wrong with them. So instead they compiled and wrote down all the emotions and feelings that they experienced. This was a powerful moment.

“Maybe,” they pondered. It was strange to them that they were pondering about the word “maybe.” Five letters, sounds like something everyone says, and the best answer to any level of doubt. There was nothing else to it. It just encouraged the kid’s doubt further.

"Save me" was the other loud sound in their mind. I guess that voice wasn't loud enough.


Questions

Questions
I pose
myself
often

Where am I?
Why am I here?
What am I doing?

Questions
I wish
I knew more
about

Where am I?
Why am I here?
What am I doing?

Questions
I need
the answer
to

Where am I?
Why am I here?
What am I doing?

Who am I?


What have you done?

a question that comes when
you ponder
about life
the past
the present
and the future

when you don’t have
an answer
that the question
turns into doubt
introspection
and a nightmare

in the end
it’s endless
a prompt to ask
whether you’re satisfied
satisfied with
what you have done

where does this satisfaction originate?
in general, nowhere
instead, you grow numb
numb to the pain
the pain when you
don’t have an answer

and during these thoughts
you go into the abyss
trying to find answers
a question that
succumbs you to a cycle
you can’t escape from


When things get rough…

You feel alone
You ask for support
But you’re still
alone

You try to call your parents
They’re too far
So you end up being
stuck alone

You drink water
You lie down
You want to scream that
you wish you weren’t alone

Time passes
Sometimes hours
Sometimes days
always alone

You reassure yourself
This will never happen again
But it does
again and again

alone.


Silence

It penetrates
like a bullet
It shrieks through
your ears
It’s louder
than a plane
It screams.

It’s soothing
like a singing bird
It comforts
your ears
It’s quieter
than dawn
It screams.


Emptiness

What is emptiness?
The absence of something
The presence of nothing It’s like silence
But quieter

It’s like noise
But louder

It’s something
Nobody wants
But everybody faces

It’s nothing
I wish I could explain
But I can’t


The truth

My mom used to say
“Always tell the truth”
followed by
“Remember that always”

I used to giggle
Laugh it off
and give her a hug

I was young then
A lie wasn’t far
from the truth

Instead of saying I got a red balloon
I would say to my mom
I got a red and white balloon

Now it’s different
I lie to myself
I lie that everything is alright
When it isn’t

It stings
It hurts
It disappoints that
I’m lying to myself


A lie

You think of something
You know it’s false

You think more
You know it’s false again

Your turn is coming up to speak
How can this even happen

So you tell everyone something
They want to hear

They get reassured
You get more doubtful

Questioning
Yourself
Your mind
Your thoughts

It’s the power of
The nature of
The instinct of

Just
one
lie.