A Tug of War
When you smile, is it for the me here,
Or the version that vanished forever?
The air smells faintly of paper and ink,
Of notes I wrote but never could remember.
Am I the wanderer or the one who stayed,
Is this skin a puzzle I can't unmake?
I didn’t know jealousy could curl
Like a rope around your throat,
For the me that’s long gone–
But buried somewhere in my head,
And still hate the reflection of this face,
The one who was killed but remains undead.
@azurePond this hits me in the kokoro. powerful writing as always.
@determinedSea4370 Thank you, and sending you virtual hugs because I think we both could use them.
@azurePond most definitely
@azurePond
What an intriguingly existential poem with such rich imagery. I get a strong sense of the conflict of reconciling the identity of who we are with who we were, and the intrinsic pain and displeasure we are confronted with when meditating on those things we are unable to change. It is very moving and one cannot help but empathise and identify with the words of the narrator. I like it a lot.
@BastionKnight Thank you so much for your thoughtful response, Knight. I'm thrilled the poem resonated with you, and as always, your interpretation captures its essence perfectly.
@azurePond I think practically every one will be able to connect with this poem ❤❤ so sad, but true! Another masterpiece ❤
@Tinywhisper11 Thank you so much! 😊 I'm glad it connected with you, though it's bittersweet (leaning more towards sadness) to resonate on such a level ❤️✨
@azurePond I love your poem, it's so beautiful and easy to understand 🫶.. I like how it perfectly reflected the situation you're trying to picture. It's about goodbye but still being haunted by that person who already left, right?
@hopefulencounter The poem is really the reader’s interpretation, and I’m glad it spoke to you in that way. Yes, it can definitely be about saying goodbye to someone who's no longer there, with their memory lingering and haunting you. Thank you so much for your kind words! 🫶
@azurePond you're welcome!😆 it's so beautiful, I love it! I hope to find a way to finally move on from the people that already left me this year .. I want to stop letting them to haunt me with memories 🙁
@azurePond
I really love your writing. Even when it's sad, even when it can be bleak or melancholy. I think it's just nice to know someone else out there feels as intensely as I do.
@Dingleboop My sincere apologies for the late response, Dingleboop. Thank you so much — your words means more than I can say. Writing has always been my way of holding space for those intense feelings. Knowing it resonates with someone else makes the shadows feel a little less lonely.
