Submit your work, meet writers and drop the ads. Become a member
Dandelion seeds grow
to fly away with the wind—
and see the sky once.
I have this image in my head of a dandelion seed in the sky. So, yeah.
who do I trust?
my inner voice?
what happens if I make that choice?

who do I trust?
are you my friend?
sometimes it's easy to pretend

who do I trust
to keep me safe?
one step from a knife in my face

who do I trust?
the government?
to what extent could I dissent?

I look around
and so many things are fake
that model has three hands
AI mistake

that model is a human
but I can't untangle
the lighting the filters the fillers
the edits the angles

they want me to compare
myself to that
to buy their diet pills
cause I think I'm fat

they want me to be
ashamed of myself
to not feel beautiful
without their help

while the algorithm
chases fame and youth
all along we're being told
different versions of the truth

and it makes us angrier
but also tamer
bouncing off the edges
of the echo chamber

performing to reflect
this invisible cage
we learn to conform
while they harvest our rage

and create a safe space
for the powers that be
the hands can't hit
what the eyes can't see

and the pied piper sings
such a catchy song
but my inner voice
says something is wrong

even as I learn to sing along
even as I use it to distract me from my problems

and the algorithm
has seen my soul
and it brings me things
that I want to know

to show me the stars
in a handful of dust

to show me something I can trust
poetry is about telling the truth
all the fancy words we use
are just window dressing
 1d Aslam M
Maddy
Nobody to read
Nobody to listen
Will my books sell?
Who am I?
What good is it to be a writer?
Sometimes the words don't come
They don't work
How dare I call myself a writer?
What good is it?
Wait and see
I've come this far
after the severest winter
my feet and body are sore
but turn back I'll never

the voice will not stop
it continues to whisper:
'  This is your destined path
   your  every fear you must conquer'
So used to life's trivia
they have taken such as treasure
Dusk falls as I lay in your arms, I return to life for your glimpse of warmth upon my form, I listen to your lush voice coming as the waterfall of sound from your lips to my ears, I could not have telled when you arrived from the dark as the cologne of a long lost friend with the scent of celestial tenderness, I invite you to never let me go, for I still carry you as the halycon of my heart.
Today you have
the power to hurt.

Tomorrow you will be hurt.
Time will turn the tide.

Nothing always remains the same.
The high and mighty have fallen too.

History keeps reminding
again and again.
Once you gave me

wings to fly,

told me I could

touch the sky.

Why everything

changed so much?

Why did you

burn my wings,

brought me back

down to your knees?
Next page