You take my hand in yours,
Your skin that is as delicate as a baby's
Your muscles that lost its firmness many years ago
You shake my hand that is barely larger than yours,
Wishing me a happy new year, wishing that I will be healthy
So I wish you back, the same way that I always did
And I expect you to let go, to tell me that you'll see me again
Only that this time, you didn't let go
This time, you looked at me, eyes weary from the near-eighty years on this earth
You looked at me like you'd never see me again
Like you were trying to memorise my face, in case you'd ever forget it
And I could do nothing but stay still
For I felt the slight tremble in the hand that held mine,
I saw the slight tremble that rippled across your now wrinkled-face
The small sniffling as your hand began to let go of mine
And I wish, I wish I knew what you were trying to say
We are generations,
dialects,
sentiments apart
How do I tell you that I didn't even know your name?
How do I tell you that I don't have a recollection of time spent together?
How do I tell you that I'm glad I'm not the eldest son?
How do I tell you that I may not be sad, when you cross over to the other side?
How do I tell you all that, with my limited vocabulary?
Because I can't, I don't know how to, I don't want to
And this story that never really began doesn't have a conclusion
It's like the cliffhanger of a series you never really wanted to watch,
Yet you stick around to see what happens next
Does someone die? Does something happen that triggers a significant wave of character development? Does the series get cancelled?
Until then, i'll sit on my couch
Deliberating the possibilities day in day out,
Hoping that my prediction would be correct.
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YOU ARE READING
D O N ' T || a collection of writings
Poetry" take me far away, where my feet will rest on new earth where my lungs will be filled with the scent of spring blooms and melted butter and my soul will tremble at the wonders from the era of the renaissance so take me, take me to a whole new world...
