glittering lights under night time skies
winking and urging you on
flashy cars and showy dresses
perfumed scents and long, red nails
glistening lips and flamboyant smiles
the sound of exuberant laughter
and spirited conversation
fighting to be heard
over the sounds of music flowing from speakers large
time moves on with wild abandon
an evening touched by magic
as you engage yourself fully in the moment
and when the time comes
to turn on the lights
the vibes immediately still
now you see
raw humanity
the tired traces
and streaks of dirt
without the sparkle
created by music
and by the substances
flowing through your veins
the showy dresses
no more than sequins
the flashy cars
no longer polished
the glistening lips
have lost their gloss
flamboyant smiles
static with fatigue
and the spirited conversation
muted in the ears of the misunderstood
and you’re left with the stark reality
of yourself, by yourself once more
open and transparent
the sparkle has vanished
and you are
tarnished and blemished
as you’d be
under the bright midday sunlight
with the knowledge, the wondering
were you true
to yourself, your values, your standards…
you can loose yourself
temporarily
in what you do, with whom you do it, in whichever form
but you will find yourself again, alone
your mind full of pictures that you now own
do you like what you see, what you feel
in this moment?
winking and urging you on
flashy cars and showy dresses
perfumed scents and long, red nails
glistening lips and flamboyant smiles
the sound of exuberant laughter
and spirited conversation
fighting to be heard
over the sounds of music flowing from speakers large
time moves on with wild abandon
an evening touched by magic
as you engage yourself fully in the moment
and when the time comes
to turn on the lights
the vibes immediately still
now you see
raw humanity
the tired traces
and streaks of dirt
without the sparkle
created by music
and by the substances
flowing through your veins
the showy dresses
no more than sequins
the flashy cars
no longer polished
the glistening lips
have lost their gloss
flamboyant smiles
static with fatigue
and the spirited conversation
muted in the ears of the misunderstood
and you’re left with the stark reality
of yourself, by yourself once more
open and transparent
the sparkle has vanished
and you are
tarnished and blemished
as you’d be
under the bright midday sunlight
with the knowledge, the wondering
were you true
to yourself, your values, your standards…
you can loose yourself
temporarily
in what you do, with whom you do it, in whichever form
but you will find yourself again, alone
your mind full of pictures that you now own
do you like what you see, what you feel
in this moment?
this is AMAZING. May I borrow one phrase...and link to you. I needed you tonight. I hope you find some rest...
ReplyDeleteIt's actually all there in the last two verses. Well done.
ReplyDeletei do, i like that place where we are so lost we can be found....
ReplyDelete+1 to Dave King. Very nice!!!
ReplyDeleteOnce again dear Shadow,....this is A # 1!!!
ReplyDeleteHope you're having a glorious Friday.
Heh. The story of my 20's. Some of my 30's too. How many nights did I spend like this...
ReplyDeletetruth? or consequence?
ReplyDeletelove the tension revealed
lovely post Shadow!
Wonderful poem Shadow. Glad that you got your award. I was a little late in commenting to tell you.
ReplyDeletebeautiful. wish the glossy shades of lipsticks could hide those reality bruises :(
ReplyDeleteGreat truths, Shadow. The emperor has no clothes after all. Eventually, what we hide under and behind must be revealed and we exposed. Surely, our sins will find us out. Brilliant writing! ~Rick
ReplyDeleteGotta add-I love these lines
ReplyDelete"and the spirited conversation
muted in the ears of the misunderstood" ~Rick
do you like what you see, what you feel in this moment?
ReplyDeletein this moment - well, everything is PERFECT. my thoughts try to tell me otherwise.
i feel anticipation about meetings next week but trying to keep it at bay. i feel glad that it's the weekend. i like the new black shirt i'm wearing. so i suppose it is a mixture in this moment.
how you doing today??
Hi Shadow.. I always wanted to ask you if you already had these poems written some time ago or you write them regularly every day?!
ReplyDeleteIn both cases, I am amazed by your talent finding the ideas, the thoughts and placing them beautifully in a poem structure.
This is amazing and so very true.
ReplyDeleteIn this moment life is grand, but in many moments before, not so much, I can relate to this poem and it's sentiments that by some standards may be acrid and smokey, hazy and better left forgotten!
ReplyDeleteI know what you're saying - I understand completely - how could I not? This is written as clearly and plainly as the nose on your face. And we've all been there - and we've all done that. Literally. Really. Truly.
ReplyDeleteAll I can say is - if you're true to you, that's all you need to do or be. There will come a day when you will realize that it would have been better to have lived it - and done it - and survived it (no matter what 'it' is) than to have not done it and to always wonder or regret. As long as you are true to you.
Wow! I think this may be my favorite of your poems, and that is saying quite a lot, because all of your work is incredible.
ReplyDeleteFabulous.
beautiful poem... i liked your peaceful kind of style.
ReplyDeletekeep on posting.......
'were you true
ReplyDeleteto yourself, your values, your standards…'
you are very talented. this touched me the most, i have always tried to stay true to myself and yet experience as much as i can, not an easy task.
gosh, this is so good, so very true...and a very good question for which I do not have an answer for...sadly.
ReplyDeleteShadow,
ReplyDeleteA well spoken set of words. I like things that make you think..and this poem certainly does that.
nice
ReplyDeleteThis was really interesting. At first I was formulating the question of whether or not you are in a wealthy envirnoment because it was plumped with sleek. And then that was torn away. Very interesting, Shadow.
ReplyDelete"tarnished and blemished
ReplyDeleteas you’d be" I enjoy the abrupt nature of this part--brilliant stylistics shadow, I am impressed.
Illusions and a moment of walking a couple of inches above reality
ReplyDeleteI love this Shadow. ....
HUGS
LINDA
you can loose yourself
temporarily
in what you do, with whom you do it, in whichever form
but you will find yourself again, alone
your mind full of pictures that you now own
do you like what you see, what you feel
in this moment?