Friday, April 8, 2016

Special Feature Collaborative Poem--By Rob Harle--Australia and Sunil Sharma--India

Masks

By Rob Harle and Sunil Sharma

This mask you wear today
cultivated
finely honed in light,
hours spent preening the reflection
mirror's lights
and mirror's gaze
to impress,
to bolster sagging confidence
dragged downwards slowly.

Like a Noh mask
Conveying various meanings
Depending on the actor’s angles
The corporate honcho, bit aged
Hides beneath the subtle make-up
Conforming to their image
And confirming the effect
Before a well-lit mirror!

And yesterday's mask,
washed away
perhaps thrown in a corner
to decay like memories,
like childhood fantasies,
the puppets and the plays
have long since gathered dust.
What of tomorrow's mask?

In the junk yard
Teaming with the odd masks
And with the lilacs growing on
The pile of assorted memories
They search for the right one
Out of that debris of puppets
Bits and odds
For an enduring one, the middle-class mask.

11 comments:

  1. very evocative/fine poem congratulations best wishes,angelee

    What of tomorrow's mask?

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  2. What a beautifully written poem, and it's so true about masks. We all wear them to a certain degree, but at what point do we drop them? Here, Rob, at Whispers, there's no need for a mask.

    Thank you for sharing your collaborative poem. Sure enjoyed it.

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  3. Thanks for the warmth and love.
    It is special.
    Wonderful host.
    Loving peers.
    Writing insights.
    Mentoring site.

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  4. Dear Sunil and Rob,

    Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful poem with us. Welcome to Whispers, Rob. Sunil, thank you for your kind words. Wishing you both the best with all your writing endeavors.

    Blessings,
    Karen

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  5. Different with creative use of abstract terms..Sara

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  6. Gorgeous, thought-provoking collaboration! Thank you so much! - Laura M Kaminski

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  7. Rob and Sunil,
    A great collaboration! Welcome Rob to Whispers, I hope to see your solo work as well.
    Your new friend,
    David Fox

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  8. Ron and Sunil, Enjoyable collaboration! Interesting and thoughtful. Thank you both for sharing.

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  9. Rob and Sunil, very nice collaboration. I certainly enjoyed it. Thank you for sharing and continued blessings!

    -MJ(www.tgbtgpublictions.com)

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  10. This is singularly beautiful, and helps me round off a busy day.

    It's left me wondering how many masks we wear...

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