Poem: “Now You See Me”

A dedication to Theodora, my absolutely fabulous mother.

I know you tried to plan my education to secure the best future opportunities in life for me, and it didn’t quite end up that way.

Remember; don’t blame yourself for doing the best you could with what society allowed you. It’s not your fault they don’t want me.

Am I a ghost?
I walk among you, yet I’m ignored
I could whisper in your ear but you still won’t hear a word

Or am I glass?
You can touch my cold, hard surface
But you see through me,
Not at what is under your nasal orifice

Or am I a mirror?
You leave you fingerprints on me, like the aftermath of a crime scene
You gaze at a reflection of your soul
The cruel, unkind, obscene

Or am I water?
You bath blissfully in my cool, calm waters,
Refreshing and soothing,
Though I’m crystal clear, you let me slip through your fingertips,
uncaring and polluting

But I have found my voice.

If I am a ghost.
I make cupboards creak in the night,
You fear me because I whisper for justice

If I am glass.
Raindrops ‘tip tip tip’ and wind howls through my windowpane,
You see my tears and hear my cries against injustice

If I am a mirror.
I can shatter into a thousand pieces and deflect the sunshine into your eyes,
A reflection of your own superstitions and blindsided prejudice

If I am water.
From the smallest ripples to the fiercest waves
I’m creating a movement and I’m raising a thunderstorm to drown out your jarring bias

Luck brought me to you, a genie in a lamp,
Spit, polish and rub, three times over
I can offer you riches, be wise,
Make a wish, like a three leaf clover,
a silver charm, or a lucky number


Destiny brought me to you, a diamond in the rough, cultivated and revealing
‘you are a jewel, a sparkling diamond’, my mother says, are you listening?
Like the evening star, shining bright,
mesmerising, glistening

Now you see me.
But do you hear my wisdom?

Only Time will tell, and she, like me,
Is a force with a reckoning
In the end, you will be judged,
On the choice you make,
Upon my beckoning 

_{Copyright © 2020 – by Maria Nicolette Alexandrou – Printed in United Kingdom}