MAGGY LIU
19 years old
University of Melbourne
guess what,
mother,
people are packed closer here
foreign bodies stick together
under putrid heat
I can barely breathe
as the crowded tram
crawls up swanston street
and the boy
with sharp elbows
digging into me
is tethered to sanity
through lime-green earphones
that barely blocks out
6pm traffic
and all these strange heart beats
sadly,
mother,
there is more distance here
who knew
roaming the streets
can be this lonely
walking past
steel-eyed businessmen
and teenagers with costumed-skin
all I can see
are painted masks
and potential lovers
engaged in this formal dance
that you have never taught me
in this big city
the size of a small country
I have lost myself
and found no one else
cultural capital
they claim
city of indifference
I reply
This poem is part of the TEARAWAY Young Poets feature for National Poetry Day.
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