The grass has a cerulean tinge which I associate
with the seaside, coarse and tough—
while the day
wraps herself in a silky cloak that gleams from afar;
it’s admiration that moves us,
inspires us
and urges us to make a change, offer input, and restore beauty
back out into the world.
Things were different back then; honesty had a way of finding its path,
a form of karma
that portrayed not only golden stones but potholes as well.
Fast forward to the current age,
and dive headfirst into lies— all vibrations in the air,
inconsequential to the medium through which they travel.
Of course, if you fight it,
you stick out, you are a rebel, a conspiracy theorist— a marked person.
The grass on my soles is scarce,
mown so short that the ground can be seen through
and the day is shadowy grey,
almost as though the skin is stretched taut across her cheekbones—
were my thoughts visible,
they would be an explosion, should I choose to speak them out loud
and see the wandering begin in your eyes—
you, the current generation, the future bread and butter of households,
the shapers of society;
your thoughts you guard, hardly ever letting an unconsidered word
escape from your lips,
I fear you lack depth; you lack imagination.
I don’t know what causes you to hide or what forms your apathy
but I need you to hold open the door.
There comes a time when pushing one’s ideas that could save our world
becomes morally the right thing to do;
much like destroying weeds before sowing new grass, only—
things were different back then.
Photo credits: Unsplash
Posted for Weekly Scribblings @ Poets and Storytellers United
And Posted on Open Link Night @ dVerse Poets Pub
A sad indictment of the current generation! I found these lines particularly arresting:
were my thoughts visible,
they would be an explosion, should I choose to speak them out loud
and see the wandering begin in your eyes—
Lovely, again, to hear you speaking it too. The tone and inflection enhance the meaning.
Thank you so much, Rosemary 🙂 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
free speech isn’t, really, is it?
I can only hope the young do hold that door open ~
Thank you so much, Grapeling 🙂 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
Fine work, Sanaa!
My fave: “I don’t know what causes you to hide or what forms your apathy / but I need you to hold open the door.”
Thank you so much, Ron 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
I like the shift from the grass with cerulean tinge and the day wrapped ‘in a silky cloak that gleams from afar’ to scarce grass ‘mown so short that the ground can be seen through’ and a shadowy grey day ‘almost as though the skin is stretched taut across her cheekbones’ – vivid personification, Sanaa. My favourite lines:
‘…honesty had a way of finding its path,
a form of karma
that portrayed not only golden stones but potholes as well.’
Thank you so much, Kim 😀 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
I love the early days when honesty would find its path. What a contrast to today when honesty is so elusive it’s difficult to find. A very intuitive poem, sad but true.b
Thank you so much, Beverly 🙂 so good to see you 💄❤️
Dear Sanaa, this is my newest favorite by you–the tone, the imagery, the truths shouting their soul through every line. I wish the latter wasn’t as current as it is, that the warnings weren’t needed as desperately. But since it’s happening and caution is needed, thank goodness for the words.
Thank you so much, Magaly 😀 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
(and thank you for the glorious prompt) 🌹
To boldly speak one’s truth is one of the hardest things there is. But yes, truth is so necessary to step into a future where better things are possible. A little old-fashioned boldness would not be amiss in such pursuits.
Thank you so much, Rommy 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
“I fear you lack depth; you lack imagination.”
I luv the irony of this line particularly, Do we overthink this pandemic or non – visualize a tomorrow?
Hmmm, deeply provocative!!!
Happy Wednesday
much love…
Thank you so much, Gillena 😀 so good to see you 💄❤️
Much love …
Excellent tone and feel. Particularly liked the line “the future bread and butter of households.” That one is going to roll around my brain for a while.
Thank you so much, Gila 😀 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
It really makes a world of difference to hear you recite your poems Sanaa. Sadly our memories will always mourn for those halcyon days on the past.
Thank you so much, Robin 🙂 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
Keep speaking as freely as you can!
Thank you so much, Jedediah 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
This is bold, full of truth, and beautifully penned. Love it!
Thank you so much, Vivian 😀 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
Voices are being raised. I still have hope.
Thank you so much, Ken 🙂 so good to see you 💄❤️
This is so thought provoking and deeply engaging Sanaa. Wonderful.
Thank you so much, Linda 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
Truths have a way to be trimmed so short that they are almost the same as lies… isn’t that exactly why we let ourselves to be ruled?
I believe that’s exactly why, Bjorn. Thank you so much 🙂 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
Wow, tough love, poetically super-charged. I know 2 college teachers who retired early because they felt students had lost their souls to their phones, and had adopted very short attention spans, and terminal apathy. Too many today are majoring in stupid.
I agree, majoring in stupid as well as plain indifference. Thank you so much, Glenn 🙂 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
Excellent and perceptive piece, Sanaa! Yes, we need more unmasked honesty and bold truth in these challenging times when even free speech is threatened.
Thank you so much, Lynn 😀 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
This has such a natural flow and I love all the grass imagery. Especially these ones where it feels so threadbare, lifeless.
The grass on my soles is scarce,
mown so short that the ground can be seen through
and the day is shadowy grey,
Thank you so much, Georgina 😀 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
“your thoughts you guard, hardly ever letting an unconsidered word
escape from your lips,
I fear you lack depth; you lack imagination.”
Conformity is a killer of imagination. The strives we’ve made as people were ones that came about by those who dared to not just think differently, but also who dared speak on those thoughts aloud. Insightful words.
Absolutely! Thank you so much, Raivenne 🙂 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
Each generation wonders what the next will do. In these uncertain times, it is even more difficult. You capture the dis-ease well here.
Thank you so much, Lisa 🙂 so good to see you 💄❤️
much like destroying weeds
before sowing new grass, only—
things were different back then
There have been experiences to guide one’s directions but there has to be adjustments for they are not all the same. Very true Sanaa!
Hank
Thank you so much, Hank 😀 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
So well written, I am not sure there is truly much change from generation to generation, perhaps each iteration just has to learn the same lessons, but with a slightly different tilt? I don’t know. I don’t know what will bring us to that point that will help us save anything, but it is the morally right thing to do.
Thank you so much, Lona 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
So true of our present time, though I wouldn’t blame the present generation, as I think many young people are engaged and trying to change what previous generations have done.
And as for lies–that, too, has always been a thing. It’s just that now we have social media to spread the lies faster and farther.
Thank you so much, Merril 🙂 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️