Carol A. Hand
Sometimes
I feel like a sprite
Invisible
And it’s really okay
especially among so many strangers
riding the city bus today
There are times I prefer
to be quiet
when surrounded by so much loud rambling chatter
There are times I prefer
to fade out of sight
when so many need attention to feel that they matter
There are times I prefer
to take up less space
when others need to take more than their share
There are times I simply prefer
to be a peaceful presence
unremarkable, unnoticed but acutely aware
of others who just need someone to listen,
to see them,
to care
***
***
Encircled by beauty
on a lovely August day
So many too busy to notice
as we each go our own way
***
Wonderful poetic tribute to last summer days, dear Carol! 🙂
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Dear Maria, thank you so much for your lovely comments. ❤
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🙂 Enjoy last summer days, dear Carol. I hope Queenie does too. He must be happy for he shouldn’t go back to school. 🙂 🙂 🙂
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Hi Carol, Your poem resonates with beauty, resolve and recognition. I have been called “leftover man” — a title that gratifies because it reflects the peace that a smaller carbon footprint. Pursuing a vegan lifestyle brings peace to my soul and joy to my steps.
I heart feeling like a sprite 🙂
“…to fade out of sight
when so many need attention to feel that they matter
…to take up less space
when others need to take more than their share.”
🙂
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Thank you so much for your lovely, thoughtful comments, Bill, and for sharing a little bit about your experiences and insights as a “leftover man.” 🙂
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Beautiful poem! Everyone needs someone who will listen and cares.
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Thank you for your kind words, Sue, and for sharing your important insights about the importance of caring and listening. 🙂
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Lovely. There is a saying in my home country: “Pour vivre heureux, vivons caches. (sorry, no accents here) Translated loosely means, to live happy (peacefully) live as if you were hidden (from others). Not in the sense of fear but in order to properly, compassionately observe, and as you say, to remain available to the one who may need that hand to hold, or that ear that listens empathically.
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Such a beautiful saying, Sha’Tara. Thank you for sharing your home country wisdom, and for your kinds words. Life on the margins gives one a powerful vantage point – not out of fear or the need to resist necessarily – but because some of us know that’s where we are most at home with ourselves and others.
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Beautiful reflective poem, and such honourable thoughts, Carol.
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Thank you so much for your thoughtful, lovely comments, Iris. ❤
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It’s my pleasure, Carol, you’re very welcome. ❤
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Spoken from the heart, Carol ❤
With so much hate demanding to be heard and coveting more space among us, we need "to be a peaceful presence / unremarkable, unnoticed but acutely aware / of others who just need someone to listen, / to see them, / to care."
Thanks for showing us the way forward.
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Dear Rosaliene, thank you so much for your thoughtful comments and important insights about how to live in these turbulent times. ❤
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Reblogged this on The Militant Negro™.
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Thank you so much for sharing this, Mr. Militant Negro. I’m deeply grateful for your kindness. ❤
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“There are times I prefer
to take up less space
when others need to take more than their share”
Remind me not sit next to you on a bus, Carol! I’m a chubby guy, so I take up more than my share of room!;-)
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Love your humor, Dave. 🙂 (It was actually a thin man who took up most of the space yesterday. I wonder if awareness of/care about others is more important than size when contemplating the notion of respecting others’ “space?”)
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This would be my opinion, Carol, But I’m sure the thin man would disagree!;-)
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There is a powerful silence in this poem Carol.
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Thank you for such a thoughtful comment, Andrea. That’s actually what I felt. I was perfectly at peace being quiet and seemingly invisible.
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Wonderful Carol!!! You are a wonderful word painter!
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Thank you so much for your kind and lovely comments, Hector. ❤
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Thank YOU Carol!!!
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A beautiful reminder of balance Carol. Thankyou 🙏🏻💕🙏🏻
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Thank you so much for always thoughtful, lovely comments, Karen. ❤
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I am here, as you described in your poem. Often criticized for it…and there is peace in being that in any place, in any space. 💕
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Such beautiful reflections and insights, Carrie. Thank you for sharing your peaceful well-earned wisdom. ❤
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Oh I love that image of you as a sprite! I love sprites. As one who seldom if EVER goes unnoticed, I would love to fit into the crowd at times. One could hardly call be a sprite as I’m almost 6 feet tall and wear my hair up all all the time which adds to my height as even does my shoes even though their soles are barely a inch high. 🙂 ❤
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Dear Natalie, that you for your lovely comments. Being little has it’s benefits if you don’t mind being invisible or “overlooked.” 🙂
You have been in my thoughts. I hope you are spared the from the fury of Hurricane Harvey and send my best wishes to you. ❤
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I guess the perks and drawbacks to everything Carol. We’ve only gotten about 4 and a half inches of rain which is only a drop in the bucket compared to our neighbors further south than we are. So we’re ok. Thanks for checking on us my lovely little sprite❣️😘
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So lovely, thanks for this soothing masterpiece ❤❤❤ in today’s times we hardly have any people around us interested in listening and being there sadly.
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Such lovely, thoughtful comments, Saadia. Thank you for your thoughtfulness, dear friend. ❤
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It was peaceful August for me too. I wish you a peaceful September.
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It’s so good to hear from you, Allan. I’m grateful to hear that your August was peaceful. Thank you for your September blessings. May your September be peaceful, too. ❤
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I load your entries, Carol. They are uplifting and always thought-provoking. Be well, dear friend.
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Dear Patty, thank you so much for your kind and lovely comments. ❤
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Nice
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Thank you! 🙂
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