ABOUT THE POEM: “The Universe is a Rehab” expresses intense existential grievance, framing life as an involuntary confinement where "they’re playing God" with the narrator's fate. The poem contrasts the ease with which others find connection—even transactional ones—with the narrator's own profound, repeated rejection in love. It concludes that the true distinction lies in character, not circumstance, suggesting that even intense desire is merely part of a forced "treatment" designed to strip away the illusion of control and meaningful reciprocity.Why was I sent here in the first place?
I never signed up for this.
Now they’re playing God with my life-
crooning self-praising anthems like twisted prayers,
bowing to their own reflections.
Later, they’ll surely ask if I’d return to the rehab.
What rotten luck I have.
I’ve never seen anyone beg a sex worker to join in;
they offer themselves freely at traffic lights,
poised on the corner for anyone who’ll bite.
But me? I poured my soul into the asking-
begging on her terms, her whim, her yes-
and she shut it down. Flat-out NO.
I recall another one-a girl, back then-
who’d perch on my lap, tease and tangle with abandon,
but draw the line at girlfriend. Never mine.
I remember a friend
who didn’t know when to stop.
She was a delight, too naive to fight.
It’s not the job that makes a whore-
it’s the character.
That even desire itself is part of the treatment,
a detox from illusion.
