Just another weed in an overgrown yard
Waiting for life’s lawnmower to run me down
Like some toxic, gilled mushroom.
But I have a secret that nobody knows.
My roots go deep, deeper than they realize,
And I will always return to myself.
For the lambent light of the sun
Shines through my yellow petals
Allowing me to thrive in the most unlikely
Of places, even as others wither around me.
I’m not some nuisance to be trampled down,
But an herb that can help you see things more clearly.
The seeds of my influence float on the wind
And can bring luck to those who believe,
For what is a weed, but a plant
Whose uses have yet to be discovered?
So, bring on your trimmers and blades!
Do your worst to cut me down!
For I am a Dandelion
And I am not so easily vanquished.
The prompt for this poem is as follows:
Choose a specific object (like a dandelion) and write a self-portrait poem about yourself as that object while using the following guidelines/obstructions:
- It may be no longer than thirty lines
- The title must contain the word Self-Portrait
- You must use the following words within the poem: Gilled, Toxic, Lambent
- It must contain a piece of small machinery
- It must ask at least one question
- And it must end with a concrete image
This is my interpretation. What’s Yours?
