I tried wrapping up my past
in wooden boxes sealed beneath the ground
but it has found its way up
I tried filling in a bottle
thrown away to the depths of the ocean
but the waves brought them back
I tried burning it down to ashes
scattered on dirty soil
but earth itself took it back to me
I tried to pray not to remember
But somehow, I dream of them
like how I dream of monsters that haunt me
Breathless as I awaken
Drowning in my own sweat
I tried forgetting
But everyone else remembers
As if it’s all written from my torsos
with words sunken towards my spine
and on my forehead with red ink
And though I tried not to look back
I face the future
with transparency of the past
I tried to keep hidden
I was hiding in clear glass