Three lines. Five syllables, then seven, and five once more. Short, sweet, and a breath of fresh air. The form of haiku is designed for simplicity, ease, and to shine bright at a moment in time. Written to catch the eye, they took the old world of Japan by storm. Overnight, everyone was trying to be the best, to capture just the right moments.
At first, it was a trend that was huge. Everyone could suddenly become a poet, and there were great battles to be the one to take the top title and shine brighter than one would have. But as all trends, they fall short. New becomes the normal.
The allure fades, and leaves it as part of life. Soon, it returned back to the poets, and life returned to normal. Even now, the brilliant light of it being new faded away into the shadows. Swallowed by the darkness that the starlight was born from.
Darkness brings brilliance into the world, but also consumes it in the end.
This modern world allows for more than the old did. Voices that were once not allowed to be said, forced to dwell in the shadows can now emerge. Perspectives and lights once smothered and stamped out can grow as hard and as fast as they can. Brilliant, shining new stars that can take all sorts of forms.
Even ones as unusual as yours.
But with all lights, there is only so much fuel. Hunted by those that still wish to smother you, tensions remain high. But even if you win, another source marches for you. That darkness, the dullness of becoming part of the norm. What happens to the Starboy when the world accepts him as just part of it?
Then the star’s shine fades, and that leaves just a man. Hollow, empty, and unimpressive.
I too, once was held in that limelight. To be beloved by many, held to a cause. There is no feeling that is higher than that, chasing it as far as one can go. But I learned to grow from it. It became a past that was long out of reach, and swallowed into shadow.
The difference however, is that I adapted. I am learning about this new world, becoming part of it once more. What makes me better than the rest is not something as fleeting as a trend, or revolving my personality and name around a cause. I am finding worth in what I can find in myself.
But shine on while you can Starboy. The darkness you fight against is coming. Nothing can stop it from taking your light and breaking it into pieces. And while you shine atop your spot, you may see a gleam of metal come straight for you. Do not worry or flinch as it comes to you.
It’ll only take a single swing, turning a shining star into a leaking fountain. Nothing left to rebuild yourself with, and leaving a dying star to be swallowed into the void.