One-Sided Love On An Evening Walk In A Public Park Poem by Raj Dronamraju

I loved her by the fountain but she did not love me
I loved her on the track where people walk in the early evening but she did not love me
I loved her by the food stalls, under the spotlights and the smell of grease but she did not love me

The shower of lights we walk under created by architects who tried too hard were removed of all romantic possibility
We came here to talk of acquaintance renewed without contract or fuss but with most of the formality of the original acquaintance

One day they will make a bigger deal out of loneliness and not finding love than freedom or choice
And maybe equality will no longer be found in selfishness
And maybe open minds will make a mouth fall open in surprise

She said something funny which she tends to do but seems surprised when I laugh in response
This is the way it always plays out - Pleasant but unsatisfying

Nothing was removed, the truth here is repetitive and you would be fined as if littering if you brought it out now
Near a bench of overflowing mother and children, I touch her hand
She tells a story about how she once ate half my lunch and makes fun of the way I talk