Priorities
How do we lose sight of what matters?
It was the early Monday morning, after a night of heavy drinking, that I saw my balcony plant; old geraniums alight in the sun now faded, thirsty for attention... which my phone caught just in time, flashing the screen, for it was 9, so I shelved the watering need, planting my feet on steps, concrete stepping on a bud, lying in defeat.
It was only a blissful morning. I think some days ago. But forgetfulness got the better of me.
As it always does.
For a moment, as I stared at the disheveled reflection in the mirror, all I saw was a blank stare looking back at me.
Was it defeat? Or was it something else? A reminder that I could not remember.
I don’t know. Not even now.
I kept staring at those soulless eyes. The bags underneath were heavy with regret. The toothbrush, of the Oral-B electric variety, kept humming through its two-minute cycle.
A few minutes later, I was done staring eternity into the abyss. I stole my gaze from the mirror and bid farewell to its speckled water spots.
It was time to go. The clock was ticking. The calendar, chiming. The phone, buzzing with the start of a routine I knew like the back of my hand.
What I didn’t know was the reflection I stared at.
Who was he?
What was he?
Why was he?
Duty calls. Cars move. Time moves away.
Three hours later, in the confines of a clinically clean washroom, I saw that face again. Those overhead white lights were strong. A new layer of shadows had covered the bags under my eyes.
But who was I even looking at?
I still did not know.
The phone kept buzzing. The plant kept wilting. All these water coolers had some life giving essence within them.
Drinking their contents, I did. Only to wash away the pity.
It always came back, though. Like clockwork.
Loved the poem 🍀