ALS NaPoWriMo Day 25 Prompt:

 

We all are proud of our achievements. We are even proud of our children, our friends, our parents or spouse. Though we keep sharing our feelings with them, let’s pen our pride into verses today.

 

Poem: Keep Away from Pride

 

Pride, they say, should be kept at bay,

For compassion and empathy, it’s known to suck away,

But humans we are, the most intelligent species,

We’ve achieved so much, pride finds its way within

 

 

Within a journey started –  a search for self,

Self that was muddled in rhetorical questions,

Self that was rummaging through facts and answers,

Self that lacked clarity and pride

 

 

Pride that became a persona – a lifestyle,

For it garnered admiration, honor and fame,

Intrepidity and self-worth were part of the game,

But along rose a cluster of adversaries

 

 

Adversaries that challenged the strengths and possibilities,

Possibilities that were immense in the abundant Universe,

But suddenly the abundance seemed to have shrunk

As the robes of ‘Ego’, pride wore when drunk

 

 

Drunk I was with ego and pride,

When a search for self I started again,

Now I strive every day to shed these layers,

Having climbed many stairs, I now feel proud

 

 

Proud, did I say?

Good Lord! Here it comes again,

All my narrative was just in vain,

How do they say, pride should be kept at bay? Huh?

 

©Vandana Bhasin

25.04.2023

 

P.S. I used a variation of “Loop Poetry”. I looped the verses by using last word of each verse as opening word for next verse.