Pupa

A sanctuary

of isolation

spun out of

wistful threads

Outside:

the wind

and the world

spin their circles

Inwardly:

spherical asylum

of silence

Desperate fingers

strenously eroding

The walls of this prison

Muted mouth interlaced

with its walls

On this stalk of life:

we all hang separately,

isolated and encapsulated

unitedly scratching the walls

Shared dreams

upon resting corneas:

exhuberantly

fluttering butterflies;

dreams of what

we will become

Notes:

My process started with finding a natural phenomenon that could be used as a metaphorical vehicle for describing the solitary existence of all human beings. I thought that the metaphor of a pupa was an excellent choice.

The first five stanzas describe the loneliness from inside the pupa and how it is separated from the rest of the world, amidst the desperate trials to get out of it.

Note well how the ending notion of the words "unitedly" and "shared" works as a contrast to the lonely existence first described, and how I invite you to ask yourself the question: are we ultimately alone OR do we stand together? My answer in this poem is: we are united in loneliness by ways of humanity.

I wanted to end on a hopeful note: for are we not all sharing the dream of once becoming “complete”? Don’t we all want to become “an exhuberant butterfly”? Fly freely?

I sincerely hope that my readers will catch the essence of this poem. Share your thoughts with me, I love that!