photo credits here.
by Tan Qi En
Can’t you see that people change
Outside the photos you arrange
A plastic panel, wooden frame
Things in the past now gone and dead
Come closer, look into the glass
My reflection atop of yours
Two faces, people, intertwined
trajectories we thought aligned
Like the way we saw each other:
Reflections of ourselves
Drawn asymptotically closer
A fraction of a hair’s breadth away
A universe separated us
Within the inch between
Maybe that’s why we fell
Things like each other, repel.
But mirrors are always paired with smoke
Reflecting the truth of a thousand lies
Look instead at what you’ve been through
Maybe that reflection will speak true
Notes: This poem was awarded the Merit award at the National Poetry Festival Competition (English) 2016, with the theme ‘reflections’
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