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I wasn’t ready to be dragged

but I submitted myself to the job

which was enough

to make me cry every day

but I didn’t cry

because they weren’t paying

anything extra for it

all the tissues I got

as consolation from my workmates

I carried home

and turned into kitchen wipes

I saved some money

if I were on a reality show

displaying my senseless talents

I would have made it to the next round

just by shedding a few tears

but I would never win

a tear-shedding competition

because I know

there are people

whose pain is greater than mine

the battles they are fighting

are too large for the canvas

the painting might speak

but the brushstrokes

cannot color the actual pain

pain is colorless

odorless

tasteless

a universal truth

but when it arrives

holding a bitter memory

even the rainbow turns grey

every delicious thing

becomes insipid

every fragrance

loses its scent

while I was lying there

thinking

I got a call from the office

Would you cover for someone tomorrow?

and I said yes

without much thought

because I don’t get paid

for thinking either