Toxic Air, Toxic Mind

toxic air, toxic mind

the air is heavy today

or maybe

it has always been

I just learned

how to notice

breathing feels different

not painful

just… aware

like every inhale

comes with a question

how much of this

is mine to carry

the city moves

as if nothing is wrong

people walk

talk

laugh

as if lungs

were never meant to hesitate

I try to follow

I walk

I work

I stay

functional enough

to not be questioned

but something inside

keeps tightening

not fast

not loud

just enough

to remind me

that I am here

inside a body

that does not fully trust

the air it needs

and somehow

the same thing

happens in my head

thoughts repeat

loop

expand

until even silence

feels crowded

I cannot tell

where it starts

is it the air

that makes me think this way

or the mind

that makes everything

feel heavier

either way

I keep breathing

like it’s normal

like it’s fine

like everyone else

but every inhale

feels borrowed

and every exhale

feels incomplete

and I wonder

how long

a person can live

like this

half breathing

half thinking

fully aware

that something invisible

is slowly

taking space

inside them