Best Poems Written by Priya Dharshini

Happiness In 21 St Century

These days happiness comes in packets of twelve
Twenty-first century serotonin is sugar-coated
Forget Skittles
We swallow small rainbows twice daily 
To reshuffle the skewed chemicals in our brains. 

Welcome to Generation Z. 
You’ll fit in here, as long as you can train your brain to be
Politically correct. 
We like our divisions invisible
(That way we can pretend they don’t exist.) 
So let the prejudice fester in your mind but never
Cross your lips.

Here, we keep our zero-hour contracts pinned to the fridge
But bury statistics on starving children like
Bad report cards. 
Empathy should be kept to a minimum
To avoid complication. You wouldn’t want to smudge
The careful lines inequality has painted, now 
Would you? 

A word of advice. 
Spend some time lengthening your stride
So you can step cleanly over the street debris
Without dirtying your soles, and if the guilt 
Starts to taste a little too bitter, toss them a coin to
Freshen your mouth. 

On the dress code, 
Wear feminism as a fashion statement 
But bleach the hairs on your upper lip until 
The gene for female body hair is 
Recessive. 
Spring clean your insides once a month
With diet pills you buy online and remember to keep
Your Instagram feed as colourful as your 
Medication.

Copyright © Priya Dharshini | Year Posted 2020