I wrote this poem when I was in high school. I think it is a good fit for the Weekend Wordsmith prompt "Yourself".
Looking Down
My size-ten feet
on my age-twelve body
granted me one thing:
klutziness.
So I started walking
with my eyes to the ground.
One time Mom noticed
that I walked with my head down.
"I see lots of things people miss,"
I said.
"I always see the dimes and pennies first."
It wasn't that.
Maybe it was fear,
a fear that someone would see
the defiance in my eyes.
[Please don't take a copy of this without asking me. Thank you.]
1-Oct-2007 - I also decided that this fit the Writer's Island prompt, "The Journey".
Saturday, September 29, 2007
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19 comments:
I like this. Doesn't the way we walk show a lot. I found a couple of pennies in my life.
finding your way... great post and memory to share, this journey of your youth.
An excellent reflection on where you come from. I bet you are holding your head UP now.
I was always a head down kind of girl too.....I like your piece very much!
What an interesting way of looking at things, nice post.
I like that bit about dimes and pennies.
Thinking over it....
i do remember lots of boys who walked looking at their feet... i always thought they were just shy......
Vulnerable and defiant at the same time. I like it.
So true, love it, Thank You!
Thanks, everyone! I appreciate all your comments, but I'm in such a rush this morning, I only have time for a quick response or two;
AnnieElf - you betcha!
Robin - I think that's a great way of putting it.
The poem leaves out a lot of background and so doesn't lead you from one thing to another smoothly - something I would do differently if I were to write this (or re-write it) today.
Hope to see you all here again!
you've captured life just perfectly.
we always judge ourselves harshly..
nice poem. :) Peace, Kai
Ah, nicely done! Makes me look back and wonder what I thought I saw and why...
Very nice! A thought-provoking image of growing up.
Cheers,
Hedwyg
As anyone who know me can attest. I look once and go. I seldom look and often fall. Could I learn to look more, do ya' think? ;-)
Squeezing in some time while working late -
Welcome, Marja & UL. I still find (and pick up) pennies! Thanks
Hi, Lea. Thanks - this one feels a long way away now. I'm more comfortable in my skin, but I still carry a core of defiance.
Welcome back, Gautami & Jo, and thanks.
Paisley - they may have been shy, but there may have been more. I know a fair number in my high school classes were greatly embarrassed most of the time.
Redness and Kai - thanks.
Hello, Sue. Time does color some memories - or outright re-writes them! But having this anchor tucked away does bring back memories of the teenage angst.
Hi, Hedwyg, and thanks.
Welcome, Mary. Ah, if only looking where you are going would keep you from stumbling! But alas, that's not necessarily how it works, literally or figuratively.
I think I was equally clumsy, but mostly because I had my head in the clouds. Lovely post!
Thank you, Holly. I think absent-minded bumping into things would have been easier than not being able to keep up with how long my feet were - they grew too fast for me to adjust.
If you could go back in time, would you walk with your head held high? 12 years old IS a klutzy time, size 10 shoes or not! nice journey :)
Hi, Lucy. Good question. The looking down only started out as protection against tripping over things. I did indeed hide defiance by continuing to look down. There were battles I chose not to fight then, and I think that was the right decision to make. The right time did come.
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