The wait: Poem

I wait at a bus stop
in summer clothes
My watch has stopped

Looking into the passengers
takes me back to an
adolescent time
blank-slated identities

I wonder if
their purses hold answers
to questions of the future

Intention is ridiculed
I need to buy a ticket
to know where I’m going

Copyright © Roshni Ramanan

Explanation: The poet is in a state of inertia, which she likens to an adolescent state of uncertainty. Time has come to a standstill in the frozen present but comes alive in the past. She is curious as to whether her fellow passengers have successfully resolved their identity crises. Her summer clothes beam of hidden hope for the future. She intends for Action to precede Intention, which is self contradicting. Her destination will be dictated by the ticket she buys, for which she will have to break free from her inertia.