Hello Blank Page My Old Friend
I’ve come to bleed on you again.*
Been a while hasn’t it. We’ve not really been in touch. Yeah sure, you were right there, hiding in plain sight in all my devices. Mocking me all this time.
All this time, you stood silent, dignified. But not for you to beckon me. Or tempt me to come over and say hello. You’re too proud, too old, too stoic for that.
Yeah. You’ve seen writers come and go. From when you were first made of paper and stone. You’ll be there as the blinking cursor in some cyborg poet’s head.
What else can I do when all I can do is sit on this white screen and let it gush out from my veins.
I’ve had enough. All these months of acting like strangers. You’re the rash that turns into an itch, that turns into a wound and it just won’t stop bleeding. Ah, forget it. I don’t have a single coherent thought right now to explain what I’m on about.
So here’s what we will do. We will have a little conversation, you and I. My love, my tormentor. My eternal enemy and my most precioussss.
I’ve faced you every single day nearly all of my life… and yet every time I come back to you, I’m an awkward teen gathering the courage to speak with his mad crush.
Talking to you today seems easier for the first time though. Even though we’ve known each other for as long as we have. Here are three things (among many others, which I will perhaps leave for another day) I’ve been meaning to tell you. But somehow never found the courage to.
- You ain’t seen the best of me. I get better every day I practice my craft on you. And I’ve got a long way to go.
- You are intimidating and aloof at first. But you warm up pretty quick. It’s one of your redeeming qualities.
- I hate you for taunting me every single time I come to you. But I like you for challenging me. And I absolutely love you for making me come back to earth from whichever high horse I’ve been riding.
So long dear blank page. Until we meet again. Hopefully on a shorter interval this time, I promise. No I mean it. Back soon.
Thank you so much for reading. If you liked this, here’s a poem you might want to read.
© Manish Masih 2022
