Poetry: A Spring in My Step

By: Camille Ogoti

The animals and birds alike come to life, 

Come to life to remind us that nature still controls our human race, 

Our human race that depends on serotonin levels to guide our days, 

Guide our days which we hope that we can take control of. 

Long Glühwein walks in the forest with frozen fingers are 

Substituted by outdoor fitness sessions; 

Dreary, gloomy and dark days give way, 

To a sun no longer shy to reveal her expertise; 

Gelato trucks selling overpriced ‘healthier’ options crop up, 

Like the blooming flowers on the once naked branches. 

Working while being cooped up in the apartment is a thing of the past! Why not burn your eyeballs staring at your laptop screen 

while your bare feet feel every inch of the hot pavement? 

Lives driven by the need to update our social media profiles, 

Profiles that represent half of who we truly are behind closed doors, 

Doors that we guard and choose to keep open, 

Open for not too long though because we have to keep mosquitoes out at night! 

They say that Spring brings a sense of new beginnings, 

But is it really a new beginning if most of what we see is Gen Z recycling old-fashioned trends? 

I want to have the confidence to rock low-cut flare jeans and a crop top, A pair of square-shaped sunglasses with a fanny pack across my chest, An FFP2 mask and TooFaced Lip Injection gloss squished into it, 

And do an outdoor Tik-Tok challenge just because, well I can. 

Perch yourself at Mauerpark and watch the skateboarders 

and in-line skaters just being their cool-selves; 

Notwithstanding the new-age music booming from a Bluetooth speaker or,

The drummers who sound like they are conducting ear-shattering seances or,

The young mums taking their offspring in the strollers for a breath of fresh air or,

The shirtless guy sprinting as he prepares for the end of the world or, 

The person pressuring you to chug your beer since they need the bottles for Pfand or,

The young men standing in the corner ready to sell you that natural herb or,

The chatter of a group of ladies swiping through dating profiles giggling at what they see or,

The couple crashing their running goals together.

I hope the universe gives us a new season that brings us a spring in our

steps,

Steps that will lead us to have less anxiety and more

dopamine,

Dopamine to take away the daily stresses of this new

normal,

A normal that we would love to take back control of.