Crayons and Paint

[Abbara]

CRAYONS AND PAINT

Brief flashes of luminescent brilliance
Enclosed within mounds of muddy brown
Generous dollops of gray and black
Globs of nothingness white placed all around.

This is the palette of color that I was given
Assigned solely to its’ use to paint a life
Colors of distress, fear and boredom
Colors of despair, pain, grief, and strife.

Whatever, in heavens name, was God thinking
I could create with such dull and listless hues?
Why not allow expanded color choices
Cerulean, magenta, sea foam, chartreuse?

Coveting paint boxes of all my kin and strangers
For years to come I’d whine, postpone, delay
I scarce came close to knowing my own colors
“ I don’t do crayons” I’d smirk and smartly say!

At last, when finally forced to start my painting
With little effort thoughtlessly succeeded
To paint myself into a corner cage
God knew this reverie was what I needed.

Forced to do nothing till that paint had dried
I viewed my palette now from angles all anew
When touched by light beams dancing from the sun
It flashed back purple, green, gold, red and blue.

Transfixed by richness newly there revealed
My guard dropped down and then came in the dawn
With help of light sent like a strobe from heaven
All those depressing hues seemed to be gone.

Others noticed me as they were passing near me
“Poor thing,” (I heard a thoughtless soul remark)
“Trapped there with palette oh, so bleak and gloomy”
She’d be better off if it were total dark.

Like an age old gauntlet thrown into the ring
Stung by that slap, I sharply draw a breath
I may hate the lot I find that I’ve been given
But I’ll defend my lot unto the very death.

God's purpose now revealed is thus cemented
For I study my old palette now and muse
That contained within it’s dull and common colors
Lie the bases for a thousand brilliant hues.

I touch my palette now with great respect
Strengthened thus from this new point of view
I’ll gladly take in hand my paint and crayons
And create beauty with these mighty few.

With frequent flashes of luminescent brilliance.

[brokenwings]

Wonderful poem...at the end I felt as if I had had a really tasty three course meal! thankyou...

A year or so ago I started painting and have been strangely drawn to using monochromes and fascinated by the more subtle ways of using colour...often 'needing' to use black in parts of the picture, and adoring greys. So I really related to the poem..

Since the 'crashed and burned' period in my life began, I have come to value my pain. Not in some masochistic way, but more with awe - and a growing realisation that we understand the whole subject of suffering, so little. And by making it a 'taboo of failure' in our society ( tho' this seems to be changing, thank goodness) so many miss the point and then have to struggle on for much longer... missing out on the strangely blissful opposite side of the 'coin of acceptance of lack and loss'.

More please Abbara! ( said Oliver )

Bws

[Abbara]

Since the 'crashed and burned' period in my life began, I have come to value my pain. Not in some masochistic way, but more with awe - and a growing realisation that we understand the whole subject of suffering, so little. And by making it a 'taboo of failure' in our society ( tho' this seems to be changing, thank goodness) so many miss the point and then have to struggle on for much longer... missing out on the strangely blissful opposite side of the 'coin of acceptance of lack and loss'.

That is priceless wisdom, brokenwings. I always ask "what's in this for me?" when things go all to heck. Like you describe, then comes the strangely blissful realization of gain. Thank you for the feedback. It is manna to know my words have touched someone. And thank you Oliver!