1

every tuesday, brother calls from a phone box
in salt lake city. he begins by reminding you of

the three wedding bands at the bottom of his fishpond,
rusting with defeat, the two children that were once his

but are now the devil’s & the tumour in his liver that keeps 
getting bigger. so you ask him about his bird watching &

what’s going on with the stocks & how come 
fertilizer works on his azaleas but not his...

I walked through the path, which was packed with trees on either side. Everyone looked at me as if I were an alien as they passed me, but mostly their gaze must have been on my trouser pockets, which were bulging with fruits. I had a bag in my right hand which contained eggs. I walked on. I did not know exactly where I was, or where I was heading to, but I was going to try and find out....

Three years of wishing on aeroplanes, shooting stars and eyelashes finally paid off.

A crack of light assaulted my bleary eyes as a familiar pair of glasses poked through.
“Good morning Kanna (darling)", my Thatha (grandpa) said, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!", he whisper-screamed.
As soon as I saw that red-lidded Tupperware box I was wide awake in an instant.
The distance between the door and my bed seemed infinite as the anticipation of what awaited me grew. 

He handed me The Box....

Baking a cake in
heart You're of mine.
Vanilla saffocating butter
as is it pushes the Door
oven of my eyes I help can't
look eyes into you and ask,
Wanna sprinkle it with icing?

 

Sweeter not are the candy
Than you who comes in handy.
Though you bring them for me,
As sweeter as they can be.

Not they are a galoon,
For they would make me a balloon.
Only a handful in a red bag,
You're the santa clause on a white stag.

Not that you are bad,
But I loved mom more than you, dad
Until one day in misty showers
I cried when I saw a dew your eye covers.

Heart...

TW: Dentist, blood

Perhaps growing up is like extracting your wisdom tooth.

The hospital clinic is sleek, modern and cutting-edge. The white fluorescent lights glare down at you as you stumble after the assistant down the hallway. When you enter and take a seat, the doctor explains to you the procedure in a dry monotone, spouting the standard information he’s memorised in dental school, rehearsed hundreds of times with his patients.

You nod your head robotically and sign a form...

New year, new school. For the third. year. running. I sighed and shoved my hands deeper into my pockets, being jostled in the hallways just like I had been at every other school I'd ever attended.

But enough things were different to remind me that it was all-change, again, and I was starting from the beginning, again. The lockers here were bright blue. Like seriously - they were the colour of kyanite. The ones at my last...

The up's and down's of friendship

   The term 'therapist friend' usually describes someone who is always there for their friends and is always willing to talk. Many people have one and don't even realise it. New people they meet often tell them things like how easy it is to talk to them and how understanding they are. Sadly, there is a downside to being this kind of friend. They normally don't have a someone of their own to talk...

The up's and down's of friendship

   The term 'therapist friend' usually describes someone who is always there for their friends and is always willing to talk. Many people have one and don't even realise it. New people they meet often tell them things like how easy it is to talk to them and how understanding they are. Sadly, there is a downside to being this kind of friend. They normally don't have a someone of their own to talk...

1

every tuesday, brother calls from a phone box
in salt lake city. he begins by reminding you of

the three wedding bands at the bottom of his fishpond,
rusting with defeat, the two children that were once his

but are now the devil’s & the tumour in his liver that keeps 
getting bigger. so you ask him about his bird watching &

what’s going on with the stocks & how come 
fertilizer works on his azaleas but not his...

I walked through the path, which was packed with trees on either side. Everyone looked at me as if I were an alien as they passed me, but mostly their gaze must have been on my trouser pockets, which were bulging with fruits. I had a bag in my right hand which contained eggs. I walked on. I did not know exactly where I was, or where I was heading to, but I was going to try and find out....

Baking a cake in
heart You're of mine.
Vanilla saffocating butter
as is it pushes the Door
oven of my eyes I help can't
look eyes into you and ask,
Wanna sprinkle it with icing?

 

Sweeter not are the candy
Than you who comes in handy.
Though you bring them for me,
As sweeter as they can be.

Not they are a galoon,
For they would make me a balloon.
Only a handful in a red bag,
You're the santa clause on a white stag.

Not that you are bad,
But I loved mom more than you, dad
Until one day in misty showers
I cried when I saw a dew your eye covers.

Heart...

TW: Dentist, blood

Perhaps growing up is like extracting your wisdom tooth.

The hospital clinic is sleek, modern and cutting-edge. The white fluorescent lights glare down at you as you stumble after the assistant down the hallway. When you enter and take a seat, the doctor explains to you the procedure in a dry monotone, spouting the standard information he’s memorised in dental school, rehearsed hundreds of times with his patients.

You nod your head robotically and sign a form...

    We've all heard those stereotypes: Asian kids studying for seven hours a day, going to twelve different tuition centers in a week, and getting spanked for getting a 94% on a test, and practicing the cello two hours a day while juggling with extracurriculars.
    Believe it or not, there are also Western stereotypes in the Asian world, such as playing fifteen different sports, being proud of a C+, having short-term views on their lives, and having...

    It was over. I could only stand there and watch as the fragile tower of cards I had so delicately built up collapsed in flaming heaps all around me from a strong but unexpected gust of wind.

    At ten years old, for all my life, I had always been able to bend the future to be exactly what I wanted. Everything I wanted to control, I did, and the outcomes were always in my favour. In...

    It was over. I could only stand there and watch as the fragile tower of cards I had so delicately built up collapsed in flaming heaps all around me from a strong but unexpected gust of wind.

    At ten years old, for all my life, I had always been able to bend the future to be exactly what I wanted. Everything I wanted to control, I did, and the outcomes were always in my favour. In...

Green and White became one
While you were next to that tree
reading a book you really liked

The lively branches broke into tears
and touched you under the silence of their vein
As the pages were once theirs

Now,

We both remember
You stole all those white things
While you yourself were asleep

The red and blue tree took your book violently
Its pages are forever part of some shiny branches
and you only have one laurel for companionship
...

    It was over. I could only stand there and watch as the fragile tower of cards I had so delicately built up collapsed in flaming heaps all around me from a strong but unexpected gust of wind.

    At ten years old, for all my life, I had always been able to bend the future to be exactly what I wanted. Everything I wanted to control, I did, and the outcomes were always in my favour. In...