This is why “The World is Flat”

I am feeling pensive this evening. I’m thinking about where my life is going and what I am going to do after college. The great thing about being in college is that even though it can be stressful, I still have hope that everything I’m doing will help me make something of myself.

I’ve been working on my online portfolio and in my search for something else, I stumbled across a poem I wrote a year ago. It was inspired by a short film called “2 Seconds” that I created last year, and you can find the film summary as well as screen shots in my visuals and writing samples. (It will give you better context and understanding)

I am 20 years old as of March 28 which means I am no longer a teenager, yet I am on the edge of this in-between phase into true adulthood. This poem reflects how I feel at the moment; full of hope, love, uncertainty and the need to cling to…something more.

(Read until the end for a surprise)

The World Is Flat
By Muriel Palanca

The best part was the moment that
Line between restraint and wishful thinking
Became something like spider silk before the sun dried up the rain. A
Blurry boundary where my innocence could trespass
Between blank space and sturdy binding.
What is the wonder that keeps the stars from colliding? I never knew.
Is it the same force that made us
Real or was it just the street lamp that made everything appear hazy?
And what about love? Why does it
Make a dreamer who’s condemned to
Believe in the impossible, the improbable, the one and a better day? Who else

But a liar can see the truth most clearly and ignore it just the same?
If I could write a symphony from certainty
By mixing love notes, fragile hope and a first impression, I’d take a
Chance on double zero because I never really learned my lesson.
This is why the world is flat. I need a
Dream to be somewhere beyond the things I see.
Will you take me to the edge and pull me back? The fall was
Never kind when I reached the bottom, so it’s best if I stay right here. I’ll
Be next to you at the bus stop, waiting for something
More to surpass my expectations. Waiting for something better
Than another ordinary day. Waiting for
An answer to why we want what we can’t have. Can an
Illusion be enough to keep you warm at night?
Please tell me that I’m wrong because I’m almost never right.
Wake me from my fantasy and shake
Me from my reverie. I’ve given
Up on romantic delusions and a childish state of mind. I remain

So close to what I always wanted, but I always get left behind. And yet,
I believe there is an end to every circle. I believe I
Can almost touch the moon if I stand on my toes and stretch my fingers. And I believe to
Watch cars go by in silence with someone you love is made sweeter by holding their hand.
The world is flat because the
Sunrise isn’t possible unless someone pulls it through the sky and the
One you love is just a stranger you saw as you were passing by. The
Last thing you should know is how much I didn’t say. I know
Time can span eternities and a second is all it takes.

With umbrella in hand I’ll take my leave and with it possibilities but
You can be a part of it if you get on the bus with me.

*Read the first word of every line to reveal a secret message.