Mesmerized
Traumatized
Ostracized
And chastised

Breathing air
Filled with lies
Vengeful words
In disguise

Fairytales
Broken hearts
Juxtaposed
Miles apart

All your smiles
Laced with spite
Covert looks
Pure-bred blight

Ticking clocks
Out of sync
Broken pens
Lacking ink

Symphonies
Jarring sounds
Hunting me
Packs of hounds

When will you
Break these walls
Answer me
Not their calls

Time to stop
Take a look
Is this one
For the books

Read between
Wordless lines
Shed the dark
Let it shine

Fools we are
Chasing ghosts
Leaving what
Matters most

Realize
Recognize
Empathize
Synchronize

– Yousuf Bawany, February 2017