Fragments of daisies fly through the air,

A constant reminder of what once was

The winds urge, whisper, “you need to move on

Don’t dwell

Let go”

It seems no one sees the change that’s occurred

All are blind to the subtle shift

To everyone else, it is just that

Darwin’s theory of evolution

Playing out in this mess

Through the mist of naivety

They’re free to lose touch

Don’t know what is real,

Can’t see what I can

The flowers still sprout,

But not like they used to

The birds still sing,

But their songs pierce the air

With a cacophony of dissonance

They say there’s a way 

to save the lost inner peace

A way to conserve what once

Produced an abundance of beauty

Such joy

But is it worth the price

The will compels me to stay

Despite all the tears

The hurt

The dead

The poison

The intellect disagrees

Nature infiltrates as well

Tempts me to leave it all behind

Build a new garden

The old will works itself out

Just give it time

Time

The unpredictable

The unfeeling

The apathetic

When the garden is injured

It craves what cannot be given

It thrives on love – simple yet not

The tears and laughs are what makes things grow

Now though,

there is nothing but 

The lack of something

And that hurts the most

Indifference is the most deadly 

It lies in wait; you think it 

May attack soon

Yet, never does it lift a finger

Because it has forgotten 

You

Are so unimportant that it cannot 

even be bothered

To finish you off

Alone and unarmed, you can do nothing

But wait

To save yourself, your garden, your animals

Your love,

Seems impossible, improbable, and insane

Should you give more than you have

Should you wait for the other

Will the other do anything

If you cease to try?

Why try if the other would not try for you?

Everyone is tired

And sick of your thoughts

But they can escape into the cloud

Oh sweet cloud

Of indifferent escape

But what happens

When you are left alone 

Only you can face this battle

What will you do?

Stand up and fight? Give all you have?

Or 

Not

By Elizabeth Barrett ’23, Co-Creative Writing Editor

23ebarrett@montroseschool.org