#PoemNo19

Everyone you meet and greet,
or even chat with will pose with this
formal greeting ‘’How are you?’’
As it is regarded as an unspoken
but practiced social norm which
reflects common decency
and polite courtesy.
To that I will revert back with a question
‘’Do you really want to know how am I doing?

But trust me when I say this,
none of them are really interested in
knowing what the fuck is up with you.
Because and when I say this
I speak from experience
Everyone is involved with their own self,
too busy to care about what you have to say.
Why suck up to social conformity then?
I will revolt in writing, pour out my frustration
but when it comes to doing it
I shy away from it.
Not because I’m scared
but because it has been so deeply
engraved in my very upbringing.
Society has imbibed this ritual of responding
with phrases like ‘’I’m good!’’ ,‘’I’m great!’’
Which do not at all sound genuine and heart-felt.
We lie to ourselves when we answer like this.
We barely skim through life
We don’t get to talk our heart out

Let’s begin a revolution of answering every ‘’How are you?’’
thrown at you
with nothing but honesty.

j.r.m© 2016