Gift-Wrapped
©December 13th, 2018
By Vijaya Sundaram
There is a gift-wrapped box
Somewhere, ready to be opened.
And a man or a woman
Seated within it, waiting to be known.
That they are in a box
Might be entirely their doing,
Or it might not be.
The question is: When you open it –
If you open it –
And they spring up,
Full of the bounce of a released self,
Will you quickly shut the box, or
Will you go away, unsure and rattled?
Will you help them climb out,
And walk around in your world?
Will you speak to them, or shout?
Or, will you shut your ears
When they open their mouths to speak?
Where you were, what you did,
What you said, and what they said,
Before you reached that box – all these
Focus like a laser-cutter
On that box, when you open it.
Now, unknowing and blank, you’ve
Opened it, was it simply because
You passed by it, and it was
Nicely wrapped up with a bow?
Ah, but there are so many bows,
So very many boxes,
And so very many gifts.
And all I want is to release them,
Not direct them – they may go
Entirely where they please.
I will release them, and step back,
And admire the beauty within
Before they step out, and flee
Far, far away from where
They sat imprisoned.
I will release them, and step back,
And admire the beauty within
Before they step out, and flee
Far, far away from where
They sat imprisoned.
I will collect all the pretty bows,
And wait to give them to the first
One who returns.
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