Living In A Man's World

A poem for Devon's Image Contest

Living In A Man’s World

Drawing from 

This robust cigarette

Bummed from a neighbor,

 

Searching for

Some sort of balance

For being a feminine woman

Active in the roughness

Of a man’s world,

 

Lately, as these tedious hours

Tick away

My jubiliant spirit has faded,

 

How I long to run wild and free

From the boundaries

Of this stale dwelling,

 

Shedding all of my uncertainties,

 Engaging wholeheartedly

In all of my life pursuits,

 

But this is a man’s world,

Filled with clouds of cigar smoke and

Outlandish bravado swaggers,

Outside of my unscathed petal rooms

Softness is rarely tolerated

 

Pink hues,

Flowers and sweet perfume

Have no place

Once I escape

These walls of lace

 

Being feminine is a felony

Out in this haggard world

Unless I’m flat on my back

And it’s bedtime

 

Working the same professions

And hours as a man,

Living practically

The same lifespan,

Yet his wages

By far outweigh my own

 

Why should I dress

Like a steely business man?

 

With all the

Rigid pen stripes,

               Baggy long pants,

                            Restricting power suits,

 

Hiding my soft round curves

And smooth silky skin

From the wandering hands and 

Eyes of this hungry world?

 

With my clever intellect

And my feminine intuition,

Perhaps I’ll stay secure

In here for awhile

And watch the scattered men

Scramble by.

Author's Note

When I saw this image, this is what I saw.

Reviews

[M.Babu]

"How I long to run wild and free
From the boundaries
Of this stale dwelling"

Loved that bit for some reason... this was such a powerful write, it really did advocate for the female gender...all the thoughts I think were relevant and actually unexpectedly coax the reader to side with you...which again is the cherry at the top. it's a man's world..true but it's changing slowly but surely.
Thanks for a wonderful piece!
~M.Babu~

[Sweet_pale_cacophony]

It is a very thought provoking piece and questions the society at large.I absolutely agree with the lines:
Being feminine is a felony

Out in this haggard world

Unless I’m flat on my back

And it’s bedtime absolutely agree with the lines..

I really liked it a lot wish I could find more words of appreciation...thank you.

[Devons]

To me, this represents the grey area that's hidden somewhat within modern society: the apparently untenable position between what we want to be and what we're expected to be. If there has been a sexual revolution then what has been lost is a middle ground; a place where what you really are can naturally exist and mingle legitimately, settled from the backlash of the upheaval. As with all revolutions though, it always seems to swing from one extreme to the other and many of the good things that were mixed with the bad get rejected along with all the rubbish.
Here, from this image, something isolated within that chaos has been created, as though in remembrance as well as recognition of simpler perspectives.
So-called 'classlessness' is as fake as the subsequent 'sexlessness' which seems to have arisen - woman today, it seems, is either w***e or power-b***h and there doesn't seem to be anything in between. Perhaps innocence has been discarded and ignorance has taken its place.
This poem is like a window into that apparently forgotten, rejected and misunderstood world where equilibrium might exist - were people capable of restraining themselves against one another...

[Buddhistboy73]

Ok, so firstly I love the words and imagery you use here....right from the off with the line about the robust cigarette, and the "longing to run wild and free from the boundaries of this dwelling"....and this poem is also very sensual, reminding us of the qualities of females, and the way men tread on them sometimes.....but I would like to think that there are strong, independent women out there who say F*K that and do their own thing anyways....
so, great poem overall for me....and I wish that there were more women who stood up and showed us men that we don't always know it all.....thanks for sharing....:)

[Maggie]

Men run this world. It's up to us woman to reconquer it. Great poem.

[Coyote Poetry]

I believe woman are doing better. I told my daughters. Never depend on a man. Have skill to be able to support yourself. Men need not control your life and money. I like the way you described the poem. I hope stay as they are. Enough men in suits trying to control our world. Thank you for a outstanding poem.,
Coyote

[Mauricio Montoya]

Great job, well done.

[STAR CHILD]

this is sadly true

[M Garcia]

First off, sorry it took me so long to review. Second, great write. Amazing visual.

[Michael of Gilead]

I don't think women should ever wear a business suit....unless it's the tear-off kind ;)