A boy full of despair comes home
He puts his heavy backpack on the bed
He put his headphone on the bed
He puts down the deadly stares from his former grade 12 classmates
He puts down the smell of weed that they were smoking around the corner store
He puts down the gossip of the neighbours about his unemployment condition as a top university graduate with a medical degree with no job
He wishes that her mother was still alive to give him words of wisdom
For she was known for her wisdom and kindness
He longs for her cooking for she made the best beef curry
He remembers her last words of instruction: “Be a better man than your father, never abandon your responsibilities”
He recalls the lines from J. Cole’s song titled Love Yours: “What’s money without happiness, the hard times without people you love”
He remembers the fight he had with his pregnant girlfriend over the phone
He still feels the pain of her harsh words telling him how is falling as a man, he can’t take care of her alone how will he take care of their unborn child
He climbs on the bed and lies down facing the rusty roof
Just like the bed, he carries a lot of weight yet no one notices the pressure he feels
He has no one to talk to, someone who can help him carry the weight
That is how the bed is, it can bear all the weight, feel the pressure and seem like everything is alright and that it has it all under control
It is just a bed after all