beneath me
I am an iceberg,
glistening in the sun.
On the surface,
passing ships sojourn.
Beneath the waves,
my enormity is veiled.
Hard astern,
mind your frailty.
Through the swells,
a mountain swims.
This life uncertain,
frozen in time.
A glacial ghost,
adrift in splendor.
My shimmering disguise,
triumphant once more.
Farewell happenstance,
the horizon summons.
Dark secrets hidden,
shivering beneath me.
the Solipsist Soliloquist.
Thank You
for not thinking 'Oh f*ck HEs not attempting to pen another poem!' and racing off to find something more interesting, informative, exhorting, or comforting.
We are allowed to write about whatever and
Icebergs are cool.
My thought du jour is... people are like ICEBERGS.
Many of us only expose a small percentage, maybe 10%?,
of ourselves to others,
if you get my drift?
Only a handful of people are ever allowed to get below the surface to discover the REAL YOU..
therefore most of us never get to 'see enough' of other people to really understand them.
We prefer to stay in the boat and rarely jump overboard to get a good look.
Perhaps you float a little higher and like to expose more of yourself..say 50%...
Or maybe you are a Tigger type extrovert, shamelessly bobbing around with
80% of your MASS right out in the open Woo Hoo!
Do you eschew social intercourse with other humans in the real world but do a flip flop on the Blogosphere and bare your soul?
Maybe you enjoy telling people to 'BELOW ME!' on a regular basis.
If you do chances are that you enjoy being enigmatic and mysterious.
You put a lot of thought and effort into it...that's cool..whatever floats yer boat..
BUT do you act that way because you think that most people are just self absorbed unforgiving snoops who would be horrified if they knew what you were hiding?...
Other folks would obviously have a better understanding of what we are all about if they could see the whole picture? But at what cost?
How much of yourself do you expose on the blogosphere
compared to the real world?
I didn't know you were nominated in the CBA poetry blog category, too! :) At the BoBs last year I was nominated in what was the art/photo/poetry category. My chief competition did all those things on her blog, plus waxed sweetess and sentimentality *all* the time and had a huge following of mommybloggers. As you know, I'm not quite so sweet, and don't write poetry, but I took up the challenge anyway and this is what I came up with:
ReplyDeletehttp://didrooglie.blogspot.com/2006/01/im-poetry-blog-too.html
I even exploited my children's images in a desperate bid for votes. Guess what? I lost. :) Let that be a lesson to you.
Andrea,
ReplyDeleteDamnit! That does it..get ready for a week of the cutest OMG pictures of my kids!
Your words ring true...but I am not about to 'go there' and completely whore out my assets for an applet in my side bar.
I just liked this picture 'is all' and I try to do one poem a month...how hard can it be right? Wrong..it is way harder than it looks and it makes you appreciate how much thought and care all of those poets put into their posts.
At any rate the Poets have nothing to fear from me because poems are too hard to write...and anyone who thinks that my poem sucks can 'below me!'
There would a real Poet say something like that?
A cheeky poet! ;)
ReplyDelete"How much of yourself do you expose?"
There are advantages to opening up. My being is compassionate and warm and inviting and I get that back in return. You get what you give.
Hi HE
ReplyDeleteWell, you know poetry is what I love!
And, I do love your poem!
My poetry is an expression of my true self...so, I guess I expose a lot of myself to the blog
world!
People know what you feel and care about... through what you write!
Have a GREAT DAY!
Margie
Maybe my favorite post of yours of all time. I guess how much we reveal on our blogs varies by person.
ReplyDeleteI certainly divulge more on my blog than in the real world.
How much of my iceberg shows in real life? More now than ever before, but probably not as much as it should. But then sometimes I probably share more than I probably should. So I guess maybe it evens out in the end.
christine,
ReplyDeleteThat you do m'lady.
It really is a simple equation but our self preservation skills are hard to turn off sometimes. People make a conscious effort to wear their heart on their sleeves or to be enigmatic....but they are still either charming or tedious!
You are very charming.
margie's heart,
You know that I mean't oh no HE's not doing another poem I wasn't talking about poets..right?
Now I am in awe of skillful poets such as yourself and I make a point of reading them...I love the economy of scale...how to say so much with so little...it is amazing when you connect with the writer and their message.
Your warm friendly words speak volumes about you.
andthentherewerenoneblogger,
Really? Geez you never know what is going to resonate with people?
I think that you enjoy opening up on your blog. Your adventures with the SS Megan are fascinating little glimpses into your soul.
You can't disguise your desire to be well intentioned, thoughtful and sincere about your emotional life.
I'm so glad that this mean't something to you AB! Thanks.
I'm probably more of your Tigger-type person. I figure if I bounce high and fast enough, no-one has the time to study me too closely to see all the cracks and flaws.
ReplyDeleteI survived the poem intact, HE, and I enjoyed it. Good work!
ReplyDeleteAs for exposure, well, I suppose that if I weren't married I would REALLY let it all hang out, but what I reveal about myself that might could be considered TMI effects more than just me, so I have to resist the urge and edit appropriately. I suppose we would alienate one group of friends while attracting others if we were to raise the iceburg completely out of the water, which is a shame, since I think that all told, we really shouldn't have to feel restrained in revealing to the world just who we really are deep inside. Of course, discovering that anyone I know online is actually a barely restrained serial killer would test my judgement, but overall, there is so much about our demons that explain the overall behaviors of our revealed angels, and I think that's actually a healthier, as well as a much more honest connection. If I discovered you invented Disco, I might have to deal with a sense of utter horror and disgust, but you are more than the sum or your parts, and I think I could forgive you for it.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed your poem, by the way. I show a little bit of self and that's all -not ready to put it all out there. Maybe one eay will get braver and expose more!
ReplyDeleteinteresting...superb poetry!
ReplyDeleteI tink i tell more on da bogosphere that anywhere else. Feel more comfortable doing that here, but sometimes I fear the uncle sams of the world coming after me if I post a religious post or sumthing.
But people hide because they want a sense of security and maybe surprises in life. I expose coz I want friends everywhere...(though I rarely meet any :P).
Through the net I met many of my best buddies, maturity is important and a sense of responsibility brews out of handling all this information!
I wish you a chocolate cake ice cream Monday Escapeon brother!
Im REAL HE..get it ok?? LOL!
ReplyDeletenice post. Well Im very much exposed thrugh my blog. U know i post alot of pics too and thats close to getting very real :) Cos not many ppl like to share pics on the net.
but ofcourse I have abt 10% of my very personal stuff that I dun share in the blog. U cant be 100% open anywhere on Earth mate.
I'd say Im a big fat Keshiberg sometimes :)
Keshi.
oh cherry!
ReplyDeleteYou are bouncy, flouncy, fun, fun , fun..
and you're the only one!
You my dear are fantastic at sharing..the trouble is that we all think that you are bloody marvelous and we don't understand why you can't see the forest for the trees?!
(:^~)
THE michangel,
Kind words..I may be a syntax killer but that's about it.
You are right about the transparency of this medium..despite the fact(or maybe precisely because of it)many of our true identities are camouflaged many bloggers really expose more of themselves here
than they do out there in the rw.
That's weird..but it makes sense because there are a lot of CRAZY sociopaths out there who cannot distinguish between right and wrong.
btw:I didn't invent Disco either..but I did sleep at a Holiday Inn last night!
lee,
There is no rush and it isn't mandatory...like christine said earlier there is an instant karmic boomerang that draws heartfelt deep consolation from bloggers when they see someone hurting...we take care of our own.
ghosty you are awesome!
It is super fun to be in contact with e-friends all over the world..it helps to eliminate those preconceptions of others being different. We humans all crave the same things..what does make us different is the INFORMATION that is available to us to form decisions. Some poor little guy in a Madrass in Pakistan being spoonfed hatred and lies everyday has little chance of ever finding peace on this Earth...same as a child who is...
running for his life in Darfur, working as a sex slave in Thailand, sniffing gas on a Northern Reserve, watching a Crack Mom shoot up..this is a brutal place for so many people..we need all of the friends that we can get and we need to educate the world. Write On Ghosty!
Merry Kesh Express,
You are a shooting star! For whatever reason we have clicked from the first time that I barged into your comment column. Despite my being some old fart from Canada you treated me like an equal and I have never forgotten that.
You deliver a lot of yourself and that's why you have 100 comments everyday...not because you are sucking up or being all things to all people..because you are being yourself and others instantly acknowledge your authenticity...and of course it helps to be some exotic smokin' hot aussie chick with a big brain and giant heart.
More than that you take the time to converse with everyone..there are so many fabulous writers that I would love to converse with but they don't respond or comment on my blog and you cannot help but get disillusioned..doesn't mean that I don't stop trying..but with you I feel validated and befriended and it means so much to me....there now I'm getting choked up..
HE look at me now! Im sitting here crying and wanting some smiley tissues so badly..LOL ur a bloody sweet man HUGGGGGGGGGGGZ!
ReplyDeleteI took u as a friend cos u just r...u made it easy for me to like u and value u as a person. So it was all in u mate :) And u have always made me crack up. I sometimes rem ur very funny comments while Im on the train and start laughing like a nutcase (not many ppl can do that kinda thing to me). Im richer than ever b4 cos I know a man called HE.
tnxxx mate for being U!
Keshi.
and read my reply to u in my latest post ;-)
ReplyDeleteKeshi.
i think by and large i expose a lot more of myself on the blogosphere than the Real World. there is safety in annonymity, and i can say things here without fear of judgement or marginalization.
ReplyDeletewell.. see.. i actually like your poem! :)
ReplyDeleteMy closest friends who read my blog say that I'm holding back and just showing the tip of the iceberg, so to speak.
ReplyDeletekeshstar,
ReplyDeleteThank You for reminding my goodladywife how lucky she is..hee hee..and I am glad that you keep 10% of yourself in the vault..
leave it there and keep it safe from getting tainted by this crazy world.
It is pathetic that so many people lash out in jealousy and fear instead of looking in the mirror and admitting to themselves that they are responsible for how they REACT to other people.
You are a human being and not a human doing and that's why we love to visit viva foreva'!
Thanks for the very sweet reply.
chaucer's beeotch,
Yes I think that your last request regarding you-know-what is a prime example of how well this system of anonymity works...you get to be taken at face value without all of the standard condemnation and reprisal.
I think that you bare a lot of your soul and that your formidable intellect scares off the bottom feeders. we humans love to label others because we are basically emotionally and categorically needy little naked apes who seem to need constant validation...you like me too right.huh..don't you..scooch over and I'll start grooming you.
perspective,
Alrighty then! You see that means something coming from a writer like you. I just felt that I had to express the obvious...you know how we drift past people throughout our entire lives and not even know them...not that we can do eveyone..that came out wrong but you know what I mean. I read somewhere that sociologists peg our relationship quota at around 150 (similar to extended family clans) and that in itself doesn't mean that they are all intimate just a manageable number.
Modern living in Big Cities is something that we escapeons were never designed to do...that's why we whittle everybody back down into categories...unfortunately we are by nature very us vs them...part of the reason that blogging works is because the physical stress of the fight, flight or f*ck responses are taken out of the equation.
mj,
ReplyDeleteI agree with them.
Although you excel at displaying outrageous and hilarious bits(often naughty bits)of cultural phenomenon and demonstrate your formidable expertise in music I don't often get an overwhelming sense of what makes mj tick.
I was super jealous of WW's recent encounter with you because I would really enjoy seeing the Wizard behind the curtain.
I know that you guard your privacy and I appreciate our little email chats..so don't worry I won't tell everybody how sweet and sensitive you are..DOH!..
One of the joys of blogging is the level of control that we can exercise over our persona and content..something that escapes us in the real world..and you make my little world a lot more fun and interesting.
I vent plasma online so I don't do it in person.
ReplyDeleteI reveal bits and pieces, but never the whole.
laura e,
ReplyDeleteThat you do! You are scary smart and few if any Rovians would ever challenge you and risk exposing their encyclopedic ignorance of reality on your home turf.
I always learn something when I visit you and that is WHY I blog..I want to learn as much as I can during my brief visit so that I can defend my rationale in the great hereafter...if there is one...if there isn't atleast I didn't waste the three pound organ holding my ears apart memorizing baseball stats or collecting happy meal figurines...not that there is anything wrong with that.
Had to give THIS one some thought, for sure.
ReplyDeleteA great poem, which reveals some of the depth I figure you don't usually show a lot of, me man, behind the one-liners and jokes and trivia and thoughts on world issues and other things that are really outside you.
But you didn't ask us for that.
I'm a lot more comfortable writing about how I feel than talking about it, and that encourages more openness here.
I say a lot more on blogs -- either in my posts or in my comments -- than I'd be likely to say in person otherwise, certainly initially.
I figure overall, I'm probably about 75 per cent out there in blogworld, 25 per cent not.
But there's a lot more to this question than it appears. First, I don't know about the term "hiding" stuff.
If it's just not readily visible on the surface, does that mean you're necessarily hiding it?
Maybe it's exactly where you need it to be.
And how are you revealing what's below the surface, and to whom?
I find I have superficial connections to some bloggers and deeper ones with others who are more open and seem to have the same vibe as I do, the same kinds of things that make them tick.
And that's where the comments section is such a big part of blogging, maybe even more than the posts themselves, that often are just the icebreakers, really, to something more.
Great discussion you've got goin' here.
within,
ReplyDeleteWelcom back from your weeklong reporting on the Grey Cup, Canada's Super Bowl.
Well from what I see on your blog you pretty much lay your nadgers on the table for those who will reciprocate..although others get to view the exchange GRATIS which is a little unnerving when you think about it..although I suppose all of the personal revelations may actually encourage others to take that extra step and divulge a little more of themselves the next time.
I have always maintained that the comment section IS the real party and the posts are like an invite..I am not sure if that is making progress but it does seem to be the actual process in effect.
That's why I have the 'would it kill ya to comment?'line at the top...you need feedback to receive other points of view and build upon your ideas.
Blogging should not be viewed as a popularity contest to justify your existence..if it were we would all post pictures of kittens and tell everybody how to make withdrawals from Swiss Bank Accounts from your PC...
btw does anyone know how to do that?
I think the blogosphere is a much kinder and forgiving place than real life so I'm a virtual Tigger I suppose. Tend to be a bit more reticent in real life.
ReplyDeleteNice iceberg by the way.
Aw shucks HE, you made me blush :)
ReplyDeleteI like the iceberg connotation to us revealing our true selves. I can safely say I reveal about 80% of my true living breathing feelings. The rest may not be revealed, maybe never. The blog is a way to express my daily or second daily events in my life, show people the way my family lives, yet, not the whole bit of the day to day challenges my loved ones and I meet.
ReplyDeleteI love reading other blogs, we are all able to get some incling into the world of others and see pics of other countries, it is grand :)
yeyy I got brownie points from HE :):) Hugggggggz!
ReplyDeleteKeshi.
HE: Methinks you didn't actually read my poem. It says it all; it was my effort to poke fun at the whole process (a process I'm highly suspicious of) by writing an extremely tongue-in-cheek limerick. I will also freely admit that the poem was also a poke at the uber-serious blog writer who was my 'competetion' as I watched her pull some dirty tactics in the voting (it was a different, more transparent process)and show some bad sportsmanship in the forum. Most of these contests aren't really judgements of merit but popularity contests. I'm just a jaded old cynic I'm afraid.
ReplyDeleteI don't expose much either online or in the "real world", or on air, either. Not because I have anything to hide, but because I've learned over many many years that no one is interested.
ReplyDeletebtw HE I dreamt of u last nite...details will be revealed depending on ur availability LOL!
ReplyDeleteKeshi.
I enjoyed that thoughtful poem. Thank you for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteAs far as how much I reveal about myself goes, I pretty much agree with what miss cellania said. I feel that most people aren't interested in others - they seem primarily interested in talking about themselves. I'm a wonderful listener, but don't give up much information about myself. I'd say I divulge about 20% of me online, versus about 15% offline... if even that much.
realdoc,
ReplyDeleteYou are quite right..and I think that it is partially due to the fact that we attract and seek out like minded people. We cultivate relationships out here that challenge and bolster our e-mages.
Thank goodness for that because I can't seem to strike up decent discussions about agnosticism or evolution in the supermarket check out line..no matter how hard I try.
laura e,
aww shucks yourself...you deserve the kudos..you put forward posts that rattle around in my head and make me examine the question inside the question. I need that.
cazzie,
and it works! We need to see that it is the little day to day things that mould us and shape our lives.
It's fun to reminisce and celebrate the minutiae of our friends and families...because it tells us that we all crave the same things in this world..after all is said and done..Life is all about the quality of our relationships.
kesh,
You betcha'...I look up to you as someone who has forged a genuine concern in the blogosphere and that is quite an accomplishment since there are about 12 million blogs out there.
As long as you are getting your thoughts out there and reimbursing the other people who are helping you it is all to the good.
andrea,
your CSI latout and desperate lines were awesome.."get a life" maybe the best advice that I have heard all day! I am not as hung up on this contest as you may think..I don't even know who is putting it on? It might be some 16 year old kid hiding in his room while his Mom is yelling "Billy are looking at Porn? Come out your Dinner is getting cold!..and clean up your room!"
Now I actually have notebooks full of poetry going back 20 years..I usually don't use them because I just want to cover my 5 main topics ad nauseum I might ad...I can understand that it might appear that I was tryin' out the dog & pony show and pulling out all of the stops to generate more votes but I really wasn't.
If I really wanted votes I would concentrate on people 18 to 30 who live online and suck their skulls dry with trendolicious crapola.
I appreciate the heads up.
aidan,
HA you crack me up..changing feet.
From day one I knew that you were young science guy and a super smart-aleck! Perfect!
You are examining the guargantuan and the mundane with equal parts of calm, cool and collected wit and reason..I don't feel pressured when I read you..I don't feel like I am being talked down to..I like your style. And let's face it you are an interesting person with tons of real world experience..you have been a very faithful funny rebounder for me...f*ck this sounds like I am at my retirement party or something!
miss cellania,
What do you mean nobody is interested...I can appreciate that your posts are multilayered compilations of incredible depth..I have no idea how you amass so much clever material and graphics..no really..if I had a staff of 3 I don't think that I could put together so many interrelated articles and cartoons and...
I see that you can afford to stand back because there is so much to cover in your posts but I don't believe that people would not respond to some personal revelations every so often.
I do know what you are getting at..I think..when people are out here surfin they have a finite time allotted for each visit (if like me they are trying to build Rome in a day) and many just want to be entertained.
Like Gord Gecko said in Wall Street,
"Bud, If you need a friend, get a dog"
keshi,
I am afraid to ask but was there any ice cream involved?
anna,
Hmmm except for the fact that you occasionally delve into areas that are deeply intimate, I am talking about going down to the core here.
You also manage to share lovely vignettes about your life that are breezy and familiar.
I am surprised that you think that you are in the vault..perhaps your idea of 15 -20% is far different than mine. I consider you to be quite free and open.
You are right people do like to talk about themselves and it is through that initial sharing that we discover that we might be driving down different paths but we're trying to end up at the same party.
Now he starts writing poetry!
ReplyDeleteHey, who will read me? I want to write one a day. Sometimes I write more than five and then my words dry out for long period.
BTW, your poem does not suck at all.
I will answer your question when I havemore time...
For now adieus!
gee tnxx HE hugggggggz!
ReplyDelete**was icecream involved?
lol! Im keeping it all to myself. ooo lala ;-)
Keshi.
Omigod! It's *my* son who's conducting these CBAs. Just now I yelled, "Billy are looking at Porn? Come out your Dinner is getting cold!..and clean up your room!"
ReplyDelete!!!!!!!!!!!!
thanks gautami,
ReplyDeleteYou write deep meaningful prose that is very tender and I always enjoy getting into your head.
If and when you make it back take a stab at telling me what my poem mean't..to you.
keshi,
Oh Boy!
I have a feeling that I am better off NOT knowing.
Andrea,
A-HA! Ok ask him what it is going to take to win something..there are a couple of new gaming units out..and find out what his favorite porn sites are..I'll see if I can get a few autographs for him that he can hang up in his locker at school.
yaaha! ur so much better off NOT knowing...but u'd be BEST off knowing LOL!
ReplyDeleteKeshi.
I read much more than I comment (or post!).But you've said again "would it kill ya..etc" so here's a comment.
ReplyDeleteNot a bad poem.Nice berg, too.
But my (so far!) favourite was the vitriole on The Juice. Interesting that the State to which he fled (as opposed to the state from which he fell)has a Bushhead.Wonder if there was any greasing of palms?Or am I just a post-hippy cynic?
Keep 'em coming.I'll keep reading.
kesh,
ReplyDeleteStop being so naughty you cheeky tart!
dinahmow,
How lovely of you to heed my plead.
It is weird isn't it? Jeb Bush of course is a different bird than his brother and I think that he enjoys being the youngest person in Florida where the average age is about 118.
Maybe OJ is laundering his book money through a Cuban Banco and he wants to be close enough to keep an eye on his illgotten gain?