Just Take ‘Em

by Mani, Grade 11

Single file to the counter,

Where smudged plexiglass distorts the orderly’s face

“Take one capsule once daily until you are able to shake off the pill-induced fog and realize your autonomy”

Half teal, half sterile white

To be taken with only the heftiest of gulps

If I were to slice the two colours, twist and then pull

I suspect pale powder would pour out,

Fall through the air,

Collect in a snowbank-shaped mound

Like the sand that slips through my hourglass, one that seems to now empty far too fast

The hands of the brass grandfather clock vibrate as they tick towards twelve,

My hands tremble as I reassure myself

The paintings etched onto my irises are littered with harsh lines, sharp as lasers,

Long as my ‘to do laters’

I’ll admit that I miss the murals they’ve replaced

Frescos filled with ferns, and paisleys, drifting clouds, and daisies

I shake, shake, shake

Scurry from place to place

My whole life flipped into one giant race

Can no longer afford to be late because my jar of excuses is how I paid-

For the pills

Teal and sterile white

To be taken with only the heftiest of gulps

I much preferred when my thoughts would play bumper cars and I could cartwheel all the way home

Now my shadow’s the same shape as every other

As if it’s been freshly popped out of a cookie cutter

I think I’ll skip today’s dose

In an instant, the vial’s been flicked to the side,

Perpetually,

Two beats behind,

The inscription,

It catches my eye

SIDE EFFECTS: impulsivity

Loose lips twist into a smirk

A smooth descent, a silent landing

Shielded by the shade of the planters' leaves

Pills that to a passerby could pass as seeds

Maybe if I give them my gulp they’ll grow into a tree

Bloom and blossom into everything you beg of me

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Winter 2024

LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT

We wish to acknowledge this land on which Branksome operates. For thousands of years, it has been the traditional land of the Huron-Wendat, the Seneca, and most recently, the Mississaugas of the Credit River. Today, this meeting place is still the home to many Indigenous peoples from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have the opportunity to work and go to school on this land.