To Evil Kermit Me: I Love You Too
Poetry Prompt: Shadow Self
To the light — I am vibrant, creative, passionate; humorously connecting unrelated concepts in a playful manner.
To the dark — I ruminate about the future to the point of paralysis; I dwell in the past trying to relive bygone times.
to the future
me: this move will go smoothly as planned shadow Kermit me: but what if it rains, what if the movers don’t show up, what if I lose a few boxes in translation, what if the new place isn’t ready, what if the landlords don’t let me pick me up my key, what if I lose my security deposit, what if the movers drop my fragile dishes (all three [3] of them), what if the new place starts flooding and the toilet spews sewage like that one scene in Parasite
to the past
me, five years ago: -says something dumb- shadow Kermit me, now: what if you said something different, what if you didn’t say anything at all, what if you asked a question instead, what if you didn’t even show up at that event in the first place, what if you’d excused yourself earlier to leave, what if you’d just been authentic and shared exactly what you thought, what if you thought about that conversation ahead of time and planned it out before it happened like that
To these scenarios, I have since learned that my brain is active, a thought jogger (perhaps, a thought sprinter). It plans ahead for Plan A and Plan B, but also all the way to Plan Z — sometimes from Plan AA to Plan ZZ too. My brain searches past mistakes to redo this planning so that I avoid future mistakes because I value learning, I value making sure that everyone is comfortable, I value growth.
As much as they are flaws, they too are strengths — when intentionally deployed and intentionally stopped.
I am accepting these parts of my shadow self. I am acknowledging the same things that bring me suffering are the same things that bring me joy.
Lucy (The Eggcademic) [she/her] wants to thank 𝘋𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘢 𝘊. for this week’s prompt: all things shadow self. After several weeks of more serious pieces, I crafted a more playful piece, because this prompt made me realize: I’m actually a lot more comfortable and accepting of my shadow self than I used to be as a teen, or even in my early twenties. This represents growth and acceptance that has really changed my life for the better, and that I want to share.
