How many ‘selves’ live within
I cannot tell-
Thinking of its great might
When I needed to wear black
I sported white
And that was enough to make
My life a hell-
And in my hell house
I home décor my face-
I let from the hearth rise the warmest smile
Hiding the icy freckles of blues
In style
And this little mask is enough to give
My life a little ‘grace’-
So this ‘graceful’ life
Is now a silent space,
Noiseless word and a quiet breeze
Trying hard to exist and flow,
It strives to unfreeze
Dark, ruthless time
To just keep pace-
Posted for my prompt ~ When I Think About myself @ Poets United Midweek Motif
sumanar/lekha 
Such are the tribulations of life, but to keep pace with it is a kind of victory unto itself. A hellish life is hard to understand but so easy to come. These small graces are sometimes enough to keep us going.
This is both a thoughtful and a thought-provoking verse.
-HA
We must be thankful for the masks as well, they do well to keep us from crumbling. Thank for dropping by my blog today Sumana
much love…
Head for the hills. Pack a bag and go to the Himalayas…now. Your husband can feed the cat and water the plants.
You have described yourself in such a creative and beautiful way Sumana!
So much effort “just to keep pace”! When “graceful” life is forced silence behind a mask, that ‘s a small Hell. I can imagine bigger ones, unfortunately. Do we all have multiple selves, some obeying and putting a smile over the blues, some getting us in trouble with rebellion? If so, let’s nurture the one who lags behind for rest and meditation, saying “no” to the public show. For peace. For love. For you and for me, too.
A sense of sadness here in the silent space. We often tend to be too hard and unforgiving of ourselves. I wish you peace.
I so know that smile that covers the inner grief. I wear it every day. We do try to give our lives “a little grace”, my friend. And you do it so well. After reading this, I wish you and I could go to the foot of the Himalayas and just contemplate their beauty, their peace, their endurance, for a time. In our minds, we can do that! Meet you there!
We should all be who we want to be not a puppet for others to shape form and control. I have always had a delight to see my children take their own path, make their own mistakes and then find the right track for themselves. What a boon writing is so we can let out our feelings which can appear to be just a writers whim.
Well expressed and is “I let from the hearth rise the warmest smile” not an incredible art, covering that inner sadness at times
There is sadness here and pain..thankful for the little mask we wear sometimes…
And this little mask is enough to give
My life a little ‘grace’-
Love this, especially the When I needed to wear black
I sported white… we find masks to just get through the hours, though in the end, who is to say if that compromise is the better path? Fabulous Sumana.
full of grace…love!!
Hmm, food fur thought. 🙂
It isn’t easy to keep up. Living life, is difficult. And seems to get more difficult everyday. Remember when we knew it all? Perhaps that is it, as we grow older, we get smarter, realize we know nothing. Our legs pumping, growing tired, running, running just trying to keep up. I haven’t stopped wearing black, when I reach for something else, it doesn’t feel right. And the little mask I wear, sporting a smile, and inside it feels different. Loved your write.
I love the serenity of these lines, Sumana:
‘So this ‘graceful’ life
Is now a silent space,
Noiseless word and a quiet breeze
Trying hard to exist and flow’.