JayJay

I wonder what people see when they first look at you,

are they nervous?

Are they afraid?

Do they wonder about your thoughts?

Or do they see you as an everyday person?

Or do they think you look kind,

I sit down with a bowl of soup,

take my spoon, and begin to scoop.

My mind spins as I go through the motion

for it knows no rest.

I hear no commotion

as I slurp and digest.

In the shadows, rights once won,
Begin to fade like setting sun.
The banners raised, the voices loud,
Now muffled by a growing cloud.

In a world of screens that never fade, 
A voice is found, yet sometimes swayed. 
In every swipe, a new facade, 
A life lived fast, but still feels odd. 

I knew it was bad
when you didn’t even have to say it,
when I saw it in your eyes,
when I knew it in the way you folded your arms
and turned away when I spoke.

Democracy isn’t a mother 
who shields you from the storm;  
it’s the ghost of a father 
who leaves when the lights flicker,  
and promises turn to dust 
in his palms.