PAD Challenge - Day 7 - The Changing Faces of Me

Through the Years...
We've reached Day 7 of the WD 2014 April PAD Challenge, and today's prompt was to write a self portrait poem. At first I thought, okay, no problem, I've done this before... Then I thought, oh, no, I've done this before... What if I don't have anything new to say? And that launched me on a thought process of how one's portrait of self changes over time... And, that intrigued me...

Still, I struggled. I started thinking of the numerous self portrait poems I've written, and I also began to think about how most of the poetry we write in some ways is a self portrait. I even wrote a poem titled, Self Portrait in Words, a few years back. It appears in my poetry collection, Reflections in Silhouette: Poems. Another self portrait style poem I wrote is titled The Sum of My Parts. It appears in my collection, Strength in Silhouette: Poems. Both of these poems strive to show the intricacies that make up who we are.

So here's my latest self-portrait poem...

Changing Faces of Me

The changing faces of me
Through the years
Scars of innocence and guilt
Eyes teary with loss and gain
My smile crooked by regret and fulfillment
Every touch still dances across my skin
The good and the bad
Evoking memories buried deep inside
Where the me beyond the façade lies
What you see today isn’t who I was
Or who I will be
And yet, I am all that I ever was
All that I ever will be
All that I am right now
The beautiful and the ugly
Wrapped up in a wonderful swirl
Creating a fertile ground
Where I continue to morph
Into the woman I am
So when you see my picture
Look for the light in my eyes
The invitation in my smile
The gentle curve of my arms in an embrace
The wisdom I seek to gain through life’s experience
See my continued growth
Into the best me
T. L. Cooper is an author and poet whose work aims to empower and inspire through an exploration of the human condition. Her poems, short stories, articles, and essays have appeared online, in books, and in magazines. Her published books include a collection of short stories, Soaring Betrayal, her Silhouette Poetry Series, and a novel, All She Ever Wanted. She grew up on a farm in Tollesboro, Kentucky. She currently lives in Albany, Oregon with her husband and three cats.

Comments

  1. KYGAL2009April 7, 2014 at 8:33 PM

    I can't get the hang of poetry. If I try to make them rhyme, they are contrived. If I try to just write something, it is just goofy sounding. I just gave up and write other things. I guess I am not willing to invest enough time in it to learn how to do it. There are so many other things I want to write.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. T. L. CooperApril 8, 2014 at 8:21 PM

      Writing poetry isn't for everyone! Sounds like you've found what works for you and have put your efforts toward mastering that! That's what's important!

      Delete
  2. KYGAL2009April 7, 2014 at 8:34 PM

    You, however, do a bang up job. This poem, is very nice.

    ReplyDelete
  3. T. L. CooperApril 8, 2014 at 8:21 PM

    Thank you so much! So glad you enjoyed it!

    ReplyDelete

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