Friday 28 February 2014

Who Am I

I run through the day as good as a puppet
You pull one string and I dance
You pull the other and I sing
You leave me I fall
You push me I swing
I live thousand lives with you
I have spent thousand lives with you
But have I lived?

I float through the motions
As light as air
Air with no ripples,
Air but no wind
I float, fly and wonder
Through so many earths
Through so many dearths
But don’t feel travelled
I don’t feel lived


I swim through the water
Wading through waves
Drowning and dying
Burning and crying
I float through thousand oceans
I drink thousand potions
But don’t feel lived

I walk on the road
I am you
I am her
I am him
I am straight
I am single
I am married
I have wrinkles
I tip toe
I limp
I am young
I am old
But who am I?
I am flying but crippled
I am swimming but no ripples
I am alive but dead
I am living but not
I am every mask around me and I forgot

Who am I?


(C) Juztamom 2014

Image courtsey here

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28 comments:

  1. "I am every mask around me.."
    A true poem! Many live a life without living it, being pulled by strings from a higher power, or pulled by strings of the people who surround you, with their expectations and interpretations.

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    1. M.Z Thank you so much. Agreed we see so many people, so many faces, so many masks but still we don't see them. I sometimes wonder who and what they are behind those masks.

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  2. 'I don’t feel lived'~ what a stand out line, among many. This illustration has for me exactly the quality you are describing, an ornate complexity that hides an alienation, an embrace of all that seems to suck any one identity away. Great job on the challenge.

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    1. Hedgewitch thank you so much for your beautiful words. "An embrace of all that seems to suck any one identity away"...yes so true and so beautifully put :)

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  3. "I am every mask around me"..such deep thoughts. Loved this poem!

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  4. Oh! To find yourself... it is a daunting task for sure. I felt the frustration and anguish in your words. The portrayal of emotions is the most significant part according to me in this well-penned poem.
    -HA

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    1. Thanks so much HA. This is from the dark side of me who inspite of so many good things in life finds its muse in anguish and frustration. :)

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  5. An eternal question, no doubt of that. Thanks so much for being part of the challenge today.

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    1. Thank you so much Fireblossom for an incredible prompt. This image was so haunting that I couldn't let it go :)

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  6. We can say all - dependable on the request, but probably there needed to be the balance....~ Sincere poem! xx

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  7. Love this and the many masks we all wear.

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  8. What an amazing poem this is! A poet as Everywoman. Loved it.

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    1. Thanks so much Sherry Blue Sky :). I am glad you liked it.

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  9. 'I am swimming but no ripples'...what an existence...beautifully done...

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  10. You nail the search for personal identity.

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  11. thought provoking and energetic ~

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  12. I am every mask around me ! Makes so much sense. Reminds me of song - Bulla ki jaane na kaun :)

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    1. Afshan appropriate song to relate to it. My favorite lyrics from the song "Na maen arabi na lahori, Na maen hindi shehar nagauri, Na hindu na turak peshawri, Na maen rehnda vich nadaun" :)

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    2. i have this kind of feeling sometimes...i feel i am living a multiple lives all at once...the version of me to my best friend is different from the version of me to my parents or other acquaintances.....and yes, sometimes in life we all prefer to wear masks than live truthfully...liked the poem a lot...

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  13. i have this kind of feeling sometimes...i feel i am living a multiple lives all at once...the version of me to my best friend is different from the version of me to my parents or other acquaintances.....and yes, sometimes in life we all prefer to wear masks than live truthfully...liked the poem a lot...

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