Small talk no more..

Sometimes it’s difficult to figure out what to say

Without giving your inner thoughts away

And when you do that inadvertently you do not know

How the other person thinks, whether you’ve made a friend or a foe

Everyone has sharply polarized views

Topics of discussion you carefully have to choose

Even traditionally “safe” areas for small talk no longer seem to be

Innocuous for discussion, feathers can be ruffled easily

Discussion about weather, for instance, can escalate

To heated discussions about change in climate

Discussion of health issues may invariably

Veer into highly contested territory

Reproductive rights, mental health, pandemic- all are

Some of the most provocative topics by far

Politics, religion and war are issues completely off-limit

So you don’t really know what topics under small talk fit..

*

So you stick on a forced plastic smile

Open your mouth only to compliment people, for a while

You meet new people but the conversation seems to stay

Superficial, you do not connect with people this way..

The list of taboo topics appears to grow

At the end of each gathering to which you go…