the world is gray by lauren edwins

The road gives way
beneath me like chia,
a small crunch, and then:
disappointment. 
I cannot tell the difference
between the buildings beside me,
taking up the great expanse 
with only thought of great expense,
and grass I remembered
has become Kellogg pebbles.

My feet move like my mouth
over the modern wasteland.
No thought. No certainty in speaking.
I cannot stand up for something other,
when my words have run themselves
into watered down paint. 
They are a paintball in my chest, growing harder,
like the sun grows dimmer,
and progression becomes
cut down trees.

I watch, ignored, as the world reverts;
spinning into the 1950s
until seeds of hope dry in my throat,
and my words are husks when I speak,
the problem being turned into misinterpretations
about how all life is beautiful​

✱✱✱

Lauren Edwins is an amateur poet, aspiring novelist, and relapsed chocolate addict. When she isn't snuggling her seven cats and single cat-dog, she can (usually) be found reading a good fantasy novel. She lives in Washington--the state, not the district. This is her first publication.