Self Portrait

In the mirror what do you see?

          Self Portrait

As I dance the soft sable brush

Across the rough canvas;

I swirl around the jovial face

Full of sagacity and wisdom.

I stoke to and fro the torso

Filled with boldness and courage.

I slash vertical the limbs

Grounded with resolve and integrity.

I caress the canvas around

The bold figure upon.

Reds of bedrock and love,

Greens of grass and respect,

Yellows of flowers and charm,

Purples of waves and honor,

Blues of skies and peace,

Oranges of sunlight and warmth.

As I retreat to admire and reflect

I cry in shock and dismay

For I have mastered

A self portrait of someone else.

Author's Note

Revised for flow 1/28/10.

Reviews

[Scarlet Pulse]

Wow! What a powerful and yet emotional piece! You use great detail and wonderful imagery throughout and great language as well. What an amazing ending, which was not expected at all. So to get the feeling of shock and surprise was wonderful. The ending just made the poem for me. Excellent!

[heido]

I like that you used one art form as the subject of another art form.
The duality is lovely.

[Buddhistboy73]

I enjoyed this piece - especially the use of colours to describe emotions.....and i liked the last line too....

[Jeff Loquist]

Elegantly written and highly descriptive. My only critique being the misspelling of skies (but I'm sure you know what to do with that).