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Monday, June 3, 2013

Less

You called it cereal box philosophy. 
Mass produced tidbits and factoids
that ultimately amounted to nothing more
than the latest fad in new age wisdom. 
You said that everyone who spoke that way
was buying into the same prefabricated speech
written for idiots
too sightless to know any better. 

When I ruminated on my life
and the myriad of ways it wasn’t turning out according to plan
you accused me of being naive
and buying into the same cookie cutter promises
of the American Dream that you said
I was too intelligent to believe in. 
You laughed at my epiphanies,
as if they were so obvious
that even the blind would see them. 

You accused me of wanting to stay stuck
in the cyclical repetition of my own mistakes. 
Told me I was more than capable
of choosing not to do the things
that chained me to the impossibilities of my life
and then rolled your eyes at me
when I marveled at your audacity.

The more I sought to understand,
the more helpless you accused me of becoming. 
Saying I was victimizing myself
by whittling my problems down
to the last common denominator. 
Defining me with the same psychobabble
you’d said I was so naive for believing.

And as I listened to your words,
as I believed your ‘truths’,
I became
less. 

9 comments:

  1. Wonderful writing, and so true of how others can treat us. Wouldn't it be wonderful to be affirmed by someone instead?

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  2. hmm what a poignant statement about listening to our hearts. lovely.

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  3. Wow! So well put- love how you did this.

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  4. That touched a nerve or two. Great writing.

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  5. Yeah others can sure bring one down just through their crap, better to tell them to shut their trap lol

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  6. Beautiful. I can relate to this just so much.

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  7. Wow! So true. It reinforces the power of the spoken word... it's so easy to bring somebody down.
    Love the tone of this piece!
    Writer In Transit

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  8. I love it when you write poetry! Awesome job!

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  9. This is really powerful. I find myself angry at this "you" person for being such a self-righteous idiot. Way to stir up emotion :)

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Thank you for your comment! I will love it and hug it and pet it and call it George. Or, you know, just read and reply to it. But still- you rock!