Candles

by Ananya V., 17

We’ll keep my eyes wide open, when I can see
Constant losing, against the road
That what I do is never enough
I’m surrounded by people who keep reaching for the stars
They manage to grab multiple and stash them
Into zipped pockets to keep them to themselves
They don’t tell me the shape of the star,
Or the color, or how much it weighs
All I know is that it’s super, super, super bright

And then I see some
Content with candles instead of stars
That flickers and dims, in the shadow of a sun
Of stark contrasts in people, and maybe
It’s the different skies that light grows
Or frequencies that interfere
And the people who influence our decisions
Or maybe just the wax in the candle or
The never-ending nuclear forces that change
Life.

Morganville, New Jersey