Third Wheel

At the table I sit, between him and her.
He fiddles with his phone, she timidly stares nowhere.
Their drinks lie untouched: hers milk, his cola.
He makes some small comment and I reply; she stays silent, giving a soft smile.
Time ticks on by, the remains of dinner cold.
He reaches for his cup and so does she, him taking a gulp and her a sip.
Silence is heard and awkwardly I sit, in between him and her.
I study them, one after the other.
She, fair-skinned, bespectacled, and long-haired; he, dark-skinned, tall, and daunting.
Polar opposites, so alike and yet so different.
He, whose heart belongs to someone else and she, whose heart will never belong to anybody.

Unclutter Me

Too often in our hectic lives, we are bombarded with things that vie for our complete and undivided attention. Many of these things tend to be minute, immaterial, compared to the vastness of everything. If we turn to these little things, chances are, we will lose sight of our original goal and focus solely on the unimportant item.

Consider the popular puzzle game Unblock Me, by Kiragames. The player is presented with a board filled with vertical and horizontal wooden blocks of varying lengths, and with one red block off to the left side. To the right side of the 6x6 square is a slot for the red block to leave the board, the goal being to move the wooden blocks so that the red block can be removed. That is, the ultimate goal of the game is to push the red block into the exit. Some players examine the setup and immediately come to one conclusion: the red block can be removed if the wooden blocks are arranged in a certain fashion. And so the player sets out to do just that - rearrange the wooden blocks into the position that the player believes will free the red block. However, the player is so caught up in this one position that even when a path for the red block is cleared, it is missed completely as the player continues to rearrange the blocks until it is in the "correct" position.

To avoid losing your destination, it's necessary to take a step back from the ever-quickening pace of life and glance at the big picture. Are you working toward your dream, or are you sidetracked by something that is irrelevant? Perhaps there's a clear path forward, and you are missing it by simply not paying attention.The key is to keep an open mind and to be aware of the possibilities that exist.

The bigger challenge, however, is to determine which items are important, and which are not. Only the self can judge.

If I Die Now

If I were dying, what redemption would I try to achieve?
In our struggles to make right,  do we truly see things in a different light?

If I die now, what stains could I erase?
Do our sins not stay with us for all of eternity?

The Sound of Silence

We sit in your house, alone, just the two of us. We play, we laugh, we play some more. Wishing the day will never end. And yet, I dread the future, the day we have to live on our own. 

I scoop some porridge into bowls while you set bread in the toaster. We sit in the silence, chewing away. Very soon, this will be our daily routine.

There's a sound at the door. Mail drops through the door slot. Bills. One day we'll have to pay them ourselves. 

We look at each other and smile awkwardly. One day we'll be working to put food on the table.

I giggle nervously. We're almost adults.

This is your house, not mine. It's the first time I've been here, and yet I feel this place is ours. Just the two of us. Outside, the wind howls, overturning flower pots and pushing trees about. Inside, we are safe. Warm. We have each other. The house is quiet. 

You finish first and clear your plate. I continue to slowly sip. And think.

The phone rings. You let it ring. We swim in the cacophony until your answering machine picks up. Savour the sound. The silence is overwhelming. 

Finally, I scoop the last of your cooking into my mouth. We place our dishes in the sink. We can get to them later. Time flies by. We sit the afternoon away, just you and I and your couch.

Soon we will fend for ourselves. I wonder what we'll truly become. 

We sit in your house, just the two of us, feeling like adults. And then your father comes home at five and the spell is broken. 

For now.

This Cruel Yet Beautiful World

When asked, some people may associate this world with Hell. They would list off all the horrific events that they hear. They might tell you about the current world conflicts, the various diseases, the crimes occurring around the city. These people might only see the dark side to every shadow, the emptiness of every glass. Or rather, they choose to only see these things.

Some people may claim this world to be a wonderful haven. They could list all the wonderful things they are grateful for. They might talk about old friends, a loving family, good health, a steady income. These people see the light that produces the shadow, the milk in the half-full glass.

Now who is more right? Perhaps the answer is not clearly black or white.

Yes, the world is full of cruelty, but it is also full of beauty. Each thing has its own time and place, whether it is good or bad. Sometimes we need to sit in the darkness, and sometimes we need the strength of the light. Life has its ups and downs, and it is only when we brave the storms that we can see the sunrise. Sometimes the glass is half empty, and other times it is half filled. It depends on the day.

Though some people choose to filter out the good or the bad, a true life experience includes both sides of the coin. Blocking out one thing or another does not make it go away. Just as a day includes both night and day, life includes both the good and the bad. The bad are what teach life lessons, after all.