An identity is not a solid thing
Made of unchangeable cogs and metal parts.
Trade in the pieces that no longer serve you
And recycle the forgotten strains,
Old portions of yourself once tossed away in exasperation
When others insisted that they knew the best way for you to be.
Though the crowd may cry “what joy in excess!”
And collect toys, hard-earned, to fill homes and bring solace,
Have strength enough to break away.
As hushed voices trade phrases dripped in oil,
Jabber slick with toxins and edges sharp enough to break the skin,
Converse with words of thicker substance.
And when doubt creeps in, after another leaves the door open,
or because you dabbled in man-made monsters,
Kindly usher it out and begin again.
Image of the work of Pakistani artist Khalil Chishtee
You consistently have the most creative and interesting blog around, and I am always blown away by the imagery you use! Thank you for that, and for continuing to post as you do.
Jeff, thank you for your absolutely wonderful compliment. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Fantastic piece! Thank you for sharing it
Lea, thank you. Happy to do so!
Absolutely lovely imagery.
Thank you Rook.
Wow. What a powerful creation. Great writing also.
Isn’t it heart-stopping? The artist’s work is definitely gripping. And thank you as well.
Thank you for liking my post at Keurawa.com! I love your site, particularly this post about identity!
Thanks so much Keurawa! Happy I was able to find your site and that we were able to connect.
It’s like someone made a body cast out of Elmer’s glue and it’s flaking away. Wow. Strong image.
Very evocative, yes. Thanks for your comment Dienna.
Great piece!!
Thanks so much Andrea!
I have read it twice and not only have to read it again but want to. That is art. Thank you.
Marcus, thank you for that. And thanks for reading. Look forward to coming to know your work better as well!