You know they like to strengthen the base

Without building the basis

That even schools forget // To-Do

Which you only regret later in the year

So as time races past without a second glance,

The concepts crawl at a snail’s pace

And settle intact within the brain

But the overload makes them fall

And makes you wonder “when”

The textbooks developed gravity

Strong enough to call to your head

Repeatedly

The “why”, after all, is a foregone clause

And so, the murky black waters,

Flowing from your head, nod,

And with them

So do those auburn, brown and blonde

That may or may not be naturally-occurring

You ponder over this predictable sensation

Which initiates a fashion

Of incongruous oscillations

Until you nod off

And the world slips before your eyes

Into the cacophony that presides

Over a Grades-Giving day

Which bursts into a confetti of alphabet

Splattered with youthful abandon

Flicking at the heart piece lodged in your throat

But you swallow it back

And open your eyes, not to the sunrise,

But to a platter of incomprehensible formulae

And since this not a surprise,

You promptly roll your head off

The textbooks on the desk,

And shake off the remnants

Of a lousy nightmare

Throwing the desk-ware

Into the bag

You swing it around your shoulders

And walk to the next class

For time races past without a second glance

– Akanksha Gupta