i have winter inside me. the kind that leaves everything cold and lifeless. it sits in my lungs. it shows up when my hands go cold and my voice starts to shake. at first it was only a small chill, something i thought would pass. but it didn’t. it kept growing. now it lives in my bones. my blood moves slow. my thoughts are fogged glass. and i am so fucking tired of shivering through a life that never seems to thaw.
- Syeda Zainab














