you, who stood by me for the longest time,
who knew what i needed the most,
who picked the right melody at the right moment,
who shielded me from sticks and stones,
who kept me company ever since; until lately,
why have you changed?
now, you switched sides at my lowest,
you filter no longer harm from help,
you clutter my head with chatter and cacophony,
you let the enemy in from the inside,
you salt on old wounds that i am alone...
why have you changed
our solitude
to isolation?
Harvey Lingat
Harvey Lingat is a teacher from the Philippines and has taught creative writing and literary criticism. His works can be found in FlashFlood 2025 and his workplace's upcoming literary folio. He can be found on Twitter (currently X) @voltmakesart.