But generously, we give:
No girl we do not assault
With song or poetry,
No butterfly we do not pin down
In a glass case of emotion – our emotion,
We play paparazzi to the landscapes
Plastering our faces and their beauty
On our profiles. We see the sun-sparkled waterfront
And conquer it – For everything
The light touches is our kingdom.
We gorge on the beautiful
Like a breakfast buffet, licking crumbs
Off our fingers, leaving the wrappers behind.
We expect the beautiful to stand
With the serenity of statues,
While we shit on them like pigeons.
We love the beautiful things so much
We do not let them be.
© 2021 Jewish Young Professional
***
Written belatedly for The Sunday Muse #161, RDP Wednesday – Breakfast, The Daily Spur – Serenity, dVerse, MMA Storytime – Crumb and Go Do Go Cafe
Movie quotes used (dVerse):
“Beautiful things don’t ask for attention.” – The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, 2013
“I’m in a glass case of emotion.” -Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, 2004 (slightly modified)
“Everything the light touches is our kingdom.” – The Lion King, 1994
Jewish Young Professional 
Wow! That’s powerful! I really love it. Every line cracks like a whip. Every image is precise and nutshell perfect. Great poem!
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Thank you!
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‘We expect the beautiful to stand
With the serenity of statues,
While we shit on them like pigeons.’
Yes! Isn’t it awful? We’ve lost our connection to nature and forgotten we are part of it, viewing it as a commodity like everything else. So well said!
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Thank you! Those were my favorite lines too! I was thinking about how we use and abuse the beauty of the environment as I wrote this.
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Yeah those lines jumped out at me, as well. You have quite a way of surprising your readers during a poem and driving the point home.
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Thank you! Gotta keep readers (and myself) on their toes.
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Wow, JYP. I think this my favorite poem of yours so far. Fantastic and clever!
❤
David
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I’m flattered and honored! Thank you!
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This is a masterpiece!
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Thanks!
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A strong wonderful poem!
Dwight
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Thank you!
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This left me wanting to come up for air!
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So true! We can be so guilty of taking advantage of nature without respecting, protecting and honoring it. Wonderful job of working in three quotes.
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I hadn’t initially planned to use three quotes, but I realized it worked, so I went with it. Thanks for the inspiration!
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Exactly.
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Wow, that is so true. I love those last two lines: we love the beautiful things so much we do not let them be ❤
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It makes you question if what we feel is really love
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Absolutely. Love has to be careful not to cross over into possession which when it’s not elevated, so often does.
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wow! strong stuff: I didn’t see that coming !
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Thanks!
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It is a favourite subject of mine. I appreciate your words.
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Thank you!
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You’re welcome.
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Great philosophical outlook here! Very deep words! Simply amazing and readable!
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So much depth and bitter truth in this! Like Helen said, it is a masterpiece!!
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Thank you, and thank you for the prompt as inspiration!
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The final two lines are so simple, but sum it all up so well.
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Sadly, it is too true. We love beauty, but we are extremely unkind to it.
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What a powerful poem! So much truth here. My ladies group is reading the book “None Like Him” by Jen Wilkin, and in one chapter she talks about idolatry, where we see something beautiful and instead of worshiping its Creator, we worship the thing, and end up marring, even destroying that thing. I’d like to share this poem at our next meeting, if I may..🙂?
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I’m flattered and honored! If you feel my poem would enhance your book club discussion, you are most welcome to share it. 🙂
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This is just amazing. I love it so much especially “we shit on it like pigeons” 😆🤣 So frank and to the point.
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Thank you!! Yeah, we’re not too kind to the things we claim we love.
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