Lenses | Teen Ink

Lenses

November 21, 2019
By brinopenshaw BRONZE, Highland, Utah
brinopenshaw BRONZE, Highland, Utah
2 articles 0 photos 0 comments

I look within, yet

My reflection bounces back

And they see nothing


Except perception,

That secretly rules the world

And conceals our truths


Dig up my being!

See my passions, cares, values

That live deep inside


I try to convey

The essence of who I am;

Perception obscures


All men are owners 

Of judgements and opinions

And, most are valid


Still they warp the truth

With their preconceived notions

Of who we all are


Please step back and see 

The way lenses sabotage

How we see others


I look within, but

I will cast my lens aside

To see within you


And within others

To understand and uplift

Because it’s vital


I can look within

But of higher importance

Is seeing beyond


We may look within

But we can appreciate 

When we look without


The author's comments:

Poetry has always been the best way for me to convey who I am and what I believe. Frustrated with cultural self-interest, I wrote this. So many issues in my community could have been solved or avoided if people focused on how their actions and perceptions towards others affect them. It would help with prejudice, comparison, and developing better relationships, no matter differences in appearance or beliefs or ideas. How amazing could our world be if we stopped trying to understand ourselves and instead tried to empathize with others?


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