Crayon

Drag the crayon, watch it break.

Pick it up, break it again.

Breaking the crayon is making the break

From reality that you seek.

Dreams of reality in sleep.

But the crayon keeps breaking.

Will all my crayons break? 

What happens when all my crayons break?

Will I have to start all over again?

Will you keep my coloured lines up here on this wall?

Or does the city need it for some other purpose?

Forget I was here, I don't want the attention. 

My crayon breaks. Please buy me new crayons. 

Please buy me new crayons to break.

Sameer Abraham Thomas is a Writing Instructor at the Undergraduate Writing Programme,

Ashoka University. Living with bipolar disorder has not been conducive to writing poetry, but

poetry has helped Thomas give voice to the fears that come with a mental health diagnosis in

an empowering way. He has also taught courses on academic writing, and literature and the arts at Krea University. He has an MPhil in English Literature from Delhi University and has contributed to multiple scholarly publications.