The others, opaque
The others, opaque
original poetry & reading
.jpg)
A stare in the grocery:
We smile & turn away
In cordial opacity.
Of their inner garden
Of lavender, aloe & oak
We see only dim spinoff,
A newspaper advertisement.
Joy & longings in blue limestone,
Black butterfly of infancy.
Daffodil rhinoceros and
The red lava of shame:
Kaleidoscope shunted into a
Titanium exoskeleton.
We gesture yes or no
Or nothing at all
Or perhaps have a word
& go on our way.
Their mystical flora & fauna
We can admire from adamant gate
But gardeners, never! Yet perhaps
We could shout through the mists
And so pierce the opaque.
.jpg)
Recording of the poem
.
Recorded with a Blue Snowflake microphone in Garageband. The background sounds of rain and cars are also recorded by me from my apartment window.
.
► Listen on DSound
► Listen from source (IPFS)
.jpg)
Reading notes
This poem is a reflection on the inscrutability of other people's inner lives. It is true that we can develop our intuition, empathy, and compassion—yet so much remains hidden of the treasures and sorrows of the other's secret garden.
Stanza One
(A glance on the street...).
Describes some common, mundane interactions we experience with strangers. Our "cordial opacity" is a cool, if not cold, kindness.
Stanza Two
(Of their inner garden...).
We see little of the other's inner lives: it's like an advertisement in writing for a product compared to the thing itself. Lavender, aloe, and oak are symbols of the soul, heart, and physical body respectively.
Stanza Three
(Joy & longings...).
Here is the innermost part of the poem, which shows the absurdity of trying to describe the miracle of a human being. We are impossible like blue limestone, a black butterfly both sinister and innocent. We are gentle like a daffodil, brutal as a rhinoceros. We are a rainbow of soul (kaleidoscope) stuffed into a crude physical body (titanium exoskeleton.) This stanza is italicized to convey that it is only an abstraction, a vague approximation.
Stanza Four
(We gesture yes or no...).
In contrast to the amazing depth of humanity alluded to above, our interactions with other are often very shallow
.
Stanza Five
(Their mystical flora...).
Concludes by re-affirming the perception of separation from the intimate experience of others. We are not the "gardeners:" we do not tend their every essential need. Perhaps, though, there is a hope of connection, if we really shout from outside the adamant gate of their soul.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Written &
Spoken by
@d-pend
Photos areFree domain &
Edited by @d-pend.
Created exclusively for
@dsound and Steemit on
January 27, 2018.
.jpg)
.jpg)
Wow beautiful ..
I liked it .. well done
Thank you for your words
Another great poetry by @d-pend. loving to read it again!
Very nice indeed. I loved the voiceover too. Very nice. Its a privilege to read this and listen to it.
At first I thought the statement was an irony. But upon deeper contemplation, I realized it is a paradox.
We are said to be living in a dimension of duality, meaning, with our God-given free will we can be at any point in the number line of a particular quality like loving and caring. We can have complete absence of it (negative scale) or we can have a lots of it (positive scale) towards others. When we are able to exercise the quality towards others regardless of how others treat us, then we are at the zero point.
There is a guy that runs a poetry contest, i am not saying you should participate, but i want more readers to see your skills and how much you make so much sense. Resteeming it isn't enough. ☺☺
Nice one
You have the highest and most sincere greetings, the owner of the finest sentences and words
A poem of my own during my drive home in the midst of a snow storm:
A drive in the snow,
And a day in the cold.
Fraught with anxiety to get to work,
But nature heed not with what we sought.
We can only pray that God forgives.
And calm the storm to let us all live!
thnk your information !!! please follow me, i'm beginner
This is cool. I loved it. I loved that Stanza 2.
The good news is that the desirable behaviors we see in others is also a reflection of ourselves. When we predominantly choose thoughts of love, we live in a reality of love. In other words, as we focus on our light within, we bring out the light within others.
Thanks for writing this poem. It captures my understanding of myself and others perfectly.
I’ve shared it within my “World life” community. With over 2000 members I hope many more will take the time to read these words of wisdom.
Once again, many thanks.
Great poem. This reminds me of a quote.
"There are known knowns. These are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say, there are things that we know we don't know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we don't know we don't know"
Lately, I’ve been noticing how people reflect these pieces of the process back to us through their behaviors and characteristics. Really enjoyed the poem @d-pend
Wow. Really beautiful. I really get the poem
My insecurities are mine, you try to heal but do not feel the insecurities that I conceal, I store them deep within myself, inside a jar upon a shelf, wear a smile braced like a Sheild.
When certain characteristics in someone’s personality trigger a negative reaction from you, there is something within you that is coming up because it is ready to be healed. Usually, it represents issues from your past that have gone unresolved.
Excellent poem @d-pend
u always create a great n meaningful poet i love it 😊