Temporary
23 June 2023
In a broad daylight of the city’s luxury
Is a haunting lament
Passing through walls
And you will only be
Able to listen if
You’ll touch the rough edges
and press your ears close.
Hear the mumbles dampened
in different tune
of those whose feet
are not the same as yours
but singing the same song
of yearning grasses home
to freely hang arms
above the window pane,
to watch the neighbours pass by
in marching buffaloes
but again,
this is not a lifetime labour
nor an unpaid due.
This is how a temporary
adds life to the dying
how a temporary fills the empty bowl
how a temporary paints hues for the future
how a temporary creates chain of hope
how a temporary leaves a permanent trace
Written by Janelyn Dupingay (Jane)