Poet Charles Bukowski's poem "Bluebird" strikes a chord with me. It can be hard to let other people see our vulnerability. We walk around in this world with so many walls around us...so much fear of being really seen. What would happen if people really saw us? The very thought of it frightens us and sends us into our shells like scared turtles. In his novel "Steppenwolf," Hermann Hesse writes about how in so many interactions with other people we have to put up such a facade...he says that we strive to be "harmless"...to not say anything too out of the ordinary but to remain in this realm of mediocre politeness in which no real feeling, good or bad, is evoked. Even to say something deeply sincere and kind can be frightening...what will the other person think of me? That I'm weird? Too sentimental? Hitting on them?
In "Bluebird," Bukowski writes about his own vulnerability, which he characterizes as the "bluebird in my heart." He struggles with the desire to let his vulnerability show or to keep it all in....something so many of us struggle with.
I scribbled a few lines of poetry inspired by Bukowski and his bluebird. I juxtaposed the lines of poetry against a portrait of Bukowski himself. I offer this original work in my Thoughtopian shop - it can be found here. Thanks for letting me share this piece. It means a lot to me to express this feeling. If you're interested in reading some essays that I've written on similar topics, you can also find my work in the written word here.
Peace,
Astrid
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