Ghosting Through - Oct 15 2025

 

Ghosting Through

Oct 15 2025

I have no tattoos, piercings, or sculpted hair.

Wear no studs, make-up, or bling.

I do not dress to draw attention,

and public displays of affection

make me squirm.

A small enough man,

I can ghost through life

largely undetected

in the press of humanity.

Tend to avert my eyes

and move fast,

talk softly, if at all

and keep my head down.

I’m not sure if this modesty

is a sign of humility 

or insecurity;

if I know my place

in the cosmic order of things

and wisely defer,

or fear being judged

shamed

exposed.

As if I had something to hide.

As if a spotlight

had me in its glare.

As if anyone else would care,

let alone gossip

snark

or stigmatize.

Yet I’m repeatedly amazed

at what people get away with

in plain sight.

Because no one’s really watching.

Because we’re all too self involved.

And because we see what we expect to see

hear selectively

too soon forget.

And yet …

I still feel constrained.

As if temperament demands it

and the habit’s now ingrained.

Or could it be fear?

Too pusillanimous

to risk,

live a little

  … take a chance

      … go big?

 Will I one day look in the mirror

and find I’ve disappeared;

nothing to see

but the wall at my back?

Will I inch my nose

as close as I can

to the cold reflective surface,

yet not even see a breath 

fogging up the glass?