Because the boundless has been buried beneath boundaries.
Because even eels no longer swim freely as they once did.
Because even the storks are unsure if they should come home.
Because the sky is no longer blue, nor the earth—fertile.
Because freedom has become just a hollow wish.
Because the whole country is a dump, a gas chamber, dust and ash.
Because people have turned inhuman, the city—overrun with zombies.

Because children have no childhood, no faith in the future.
They scroll endlessly, speak little, barely tell stories.

Because the young have become coins for petty change,
cheap goods, white slaves, victims of all kinds of trafficking.

Because betting shops spring up on every corner,
legally protected, while libraries,
schools, and kindergartens fall apart.

Because people die on the roads every day,
as if we’re at war.

Because the image of the world is yellowed,
a yellow stamp, grim headlines.

Because truth isn’t worth a dime,
and lies are overvalued.

Because everything is up for sale—past, present,
and the future doesn’t exist anyway,
except as a grammatical fiction,
and a pre-election slogan.

December 4, 2023