Seven kisses & fairy lights
for children afraid of the dark,
who will never grow old enough
to run across the land,
chasing shadows & asking strangers
for a way back
to their inner child.
Seven kisses & fairy lights
for children who did not know
the difference between good & bad emotions.
Did not yet learn that feelings are stickier
than chewing gum under classroom furniture,
because school started the week after they were killed.
It sort of worked out.
Because it hasn’t turn out so well
for adults across the horizon.
Waking up mid-REM cycle.
No outfits of the day.
No couch to 5k.
To build up the strength to speak.
You’d have to be an Avenger or something.
Seven kisses & fairy lights
for children who did not run.
Mistaking the barrel of a gun
for a camera lens.
For children whose idiosyncrasies
will not be captured within
Gen Alpha clichés in the future.
That is, if we have one.
3.10.2024/VDS
Vyoma 