#1aminisolation

Spoken Word Poem written by: Marie Rosalina D. Valencia (Grade 12 HUMSS Quartz)

[Road sign used: !Danger! Falling Debris

The figures of speech used for this( Allusion, Anaphora, Anthypophora, Apostrophe, Polysyndeton and Metaphor) have been italicized]

Today it is day four hundred and something, whatever, it’s not like the numbers really matter

I’m stuck in that age where there’s a modern plague but I’m no long-blonde haired girl living in a tower

I woke up today and I realized how I have been following the same routine every single day

How my home is like a prison and my bedroom is the cell, and in it, I stay

Where most of the time I just sit on my bed, bored, staring at the ceiling fan

Wondering how come I can recall when this thing began?

Other people would say “Before this, life used to be so normal, so simple” While I’m here trying to think about when the events in my life were ever normal

It was hard to get used to this way of living at first-I didn’t overreact, weep or wallow

Just longed to breathe the air that got through my window 

I adjusted to the system, so did my friends 

Even if it took us 7 months to see each other again

I miss them dearly and I think about when we could all hang out again 

But I know that being safe means maintaining some distance

Just glad that somehow, we all remain in touch, keep contact

Most of the time, I am alone in my room, not really alone or lonely

Family’s a room away if I am in need of company 

I find it weird how I don’t seem to question the things that frustrate me 

Like these restrictions don’t really annoy me

Neither could wearing a mask be so suffocating

But I think about the thoughts that pop up inside my head, I think these thoughts could drive me insane instead, I think with that slight possibility,

That I am convinced that I am slowly, driving myself crazy

I mean, am I? Could I be? Is this what the pandemic means to do with my mind? Means to make me crazy? I-I think so.. But at the same time, I don’t really know.. 

I guess I’ll use this opportunity, to tell the truth, give someone my piece of mind with the things I have observed, about anything and everything, to bring me peace and help me sleep well tonight 

I think social media is good for entertainment but no matter how one person sees it, it’s too toxic

There’s a clash between the posts of the privileged and unprivileged, and it’s sad to think how one can outweigh the other 

How come the moment people become famous, they don’t act like themselves, they act like they’re above everyone else once they have everything easier?

Or how discussing about politics can be so controversial and everyone else is interested to know, if I’m on team A, or team B, when I find it best to not involve myself in that kind of conversation

I’m not convinced by anyone’s claims about the other, for I’d rather wait and see team A and team B settle their arguments, draw a conclusion, compromise than to fight and figure out who is really right when learning to work alongside one another should be the real topic of discussion 

Since when did the person I support-celebrity or politician, determine if I can or cannot be someone’s friend?

When images and videos are edited, they become humorous, part of the amusement, they’re indeed, part of entertainment,

Yet when the jokes get out of control, and people begin behaving violently, and they start cyberbullying 

I tend to ask how is it so funny? How can people find it so humorous? Should they keep on laughing?

And since when was it okay to openly exploit children, if the parents didn’t want the media to show their kids, why do some willingly expose them?

I think parents should teach their children to enjoy their youth more without worrying about their appearance in the eyes of their peers, or other people, and not to fear where they’ll be in a year

School is just a blip, doesn’t matter what school anyone goes to, as long as they’re getting the proper education they need from it

Like when did the name of a school or university determine the job I’ll have, after I finish another 4 years of studying? 

When did my report card, when did my grades determine how smart I am? How good am I at something? Other than academic related activities?

The education system is flawed, I think it should focus more on teaching kids how to prepare for the real world, when they turn 20 and need to help pay rent, or taxes

Or that falling in love doesn’t mean rushing anyone who opposes

Or that the friends someone has made, will stay, and some will eventually drift away

Like my sunflowers-My lovely sunflowers! No matter how much I took care of you, your petals still fell, and you wilted away anyway..

I used to be that kid who had a lot of dreams, so I set goals to achieve them all, in any way I could but without having to exert effort or work hard for my dreams to come true

I am older now, and I’ve learned that sacrifices are made, they are important, and I have to say goodbye to everything I have ever known or knew, truth is my perception is skewed

The world I live in, although it is full of wonders, and beautiful places I am yet to visit, I am yet to see, I am yet to discover, and beautiful people I am yet to talk to and meet

Has both made me excited and nervous, for its beauty can be oh so overwhelming

At the same time, there is ugly to it-beings living in dark places, by ugly I mean character-wise, not how I judge other people based on their features, and I’ve got this fear that

Whenever I meet new people, I have to wear a mask (not literally), a mask that hides who I really am-I’ve built walls around my heart, as if it were made of stone, to keep me safe and protected, especially from the pain of the past. (My heart is made of stone)

This is an organized compilation of the thoughts that have been running through my mind- my view of certain things, of people, of the world-all just my opinions, this is how honest I have been, for a year and a half, ever since I have been stuck in quarantine.