Alone in a room
Curtains drawn tight
A streak of light with an orange hue
Illuminating matter in its path as it goes
A mental prison, you see
The orange hue suddenly stops
The sun fighting a losing battle
Dying out the orange light to give way for darkness
Depression creeps its way into the body
Like ants creeping into a sugary jar
A torch shines at the back of the head like a film projector
Showcasing the monsters of the mind for the entire world to see
Grey streaks on the wall like static
A shapeless green-eyed monster named Jealousy
Deep blue hues of anguish forming the indestructible bars
Yellow orchard streaks of guilt
Blue tears from an eye feeding a mouth
Unable to quench the thirst
A mental prison, you see
Much harder to break out of than any worldly prison
The key in hand, the lock and bars in front
Yet, the key drops,
With a clapping sound like thunder as it smashes against the mosaic floor
A mental prison, you see
It locks up and gives you the key
Demoralizing to the point where you don’t even bother unlocking the bars
But no,
In the darkness, a book opens
The others follow path
Enlighten floods out from the pages
Its white-hot light burns away all colours of despair
And gives way to a rainbow of emotions
Gone away are the blue bars and grey static
The shackles crack and the walls come crashing down
Liberated, the mind flows everywhere
Life’s beauty is appreciated once again
Tranquility and solace enters the mind,
Driving out the depression
It’s a mental prison, you see
The easiest of prisons to break out of
The secret is –
Just let go
You won’t die
Time heals everything
Just let go
[Uzayer Masud (14) is a student of Class-VII, South Breeze School, Dhaka]
