This place is scary.

This place scares me.

There are so many people,

bikes, cars, there's just too much of everything.

That's what scares me the most.

Courtesy Photo

The uncertainty of everything makes it so.

So many people stalling everywhere,

like they're waiting for something or someone.

They're not.

See there’s a huge bunch of us;

young, old, lost, scared, angry, and tired.

And there are more born every day,

into this scary, empty place.

With no safe harbors to nurture,

raise a generation that knows better than this.

A generation thats protected and planned for.

You can quickly tell by the look on someone’s face,

everyone is really going through it.

Maybe because I'm tired too

I can tell a tired look.

This place,

it takes from you.

At first, you care, say “excuse me”,

keep your rubbish in your bag or hand until you get home,

give street kids some money,

buy from street vendors.

And then it grows on you.

The kids on the street are someone’s business venture,

the needy people storming cafes do so routinely,

Street vendors exchange what you bought for something else,

It's every man for himself.

Literally.

Before you know it,

you’re like everyone else,

looking out for only yourself.

Dumping rubbish anywhere,

shutting the window against a skinny street kid,

walking past a homeless old woman.

This place,

makes you vigilant,

in a very bad way.

You do not trust anyone.

You worry when one person walks behind you for too long,

or when they stare too long,

You pull away when a stranger asks for directions.

When you look at the scars, the cuts,

on the faces and hands,

you wonder how they got them.

What do they do when it's dark?

This place is scary.