Sunrays and puppy fur to fill my days
Sit in the discomfort, she says,
But just like all the years I’ve known,
I only ever feel the most real alone.
In the shade of my room,
In the glow of these words,
I reminisce.
It feels like mountains between us,
The girl I am, the girl I used to be,
And the girl I want to become.
Futile contemplations are nothing but a seductive confusion
Like the hurricanes of the west,
And the monsoons of the east,
There is no land I’ve known without turmoil.
So, what is peace to me,
If not a little chaos?
Emotions are my lifeline,
The only thing I’ve ever called my own.
Ibtisam Shahbaz is an emerging writer and poet based in Naarm, drawing inspiration from her Australian-Pakistani identity. She enjoys exploring life’s complexities through nature-based metaphors in her writing. Her fiction has been featured in various literary journals, including Verge, published by Monash University, and the Jacaranda Journal, based at the University of Queensland. She has also served as Poetry and Writing Editor at Belonging Magazine and is currently pursuing a STEM degree.