When Lines Blur

By Kimberly Nguyen

Posted on June 1, 2023

Cover Image Title: A Symbol of Love

Cover Image by: Alice

Classification: Photography

Specifications: Digital, ‪2,803 x 1,814‬

Year: 2023

Roses are the flower of love

Roses have thorns

Roses make one bleed red

Red is the color of love

Red is rage’s manifestations

Red is fiery

Fire is love

Fire is the spark of passion

Fire is sacrifice

Sacrifice is love

Sacrifice is a worthy trade

Sacrifice is a deep pit of loss

Loss is love

Loss is a missing piece

Loss is an ugly memory

Memories are love

Memories are captured and become snapshots

Memories are left forgotten in the dark

The dark is love

The dark is loneliness as well as contentment

The dark blinds you

Help me

For I have become blind

All the blurred lines

What is love?

Descriptions:

This free verse poem is about the scrabble our brains go through when asked “what is love?” We grow up learning that love is family, love is a warm hug, love is a breath of fresh air. As we grow older, we start experiencing love that is spoiled, love that requires us to hurt and bruise, love that is dangerous. After this, we experience relationships that give us a mix of it all: the exceptional, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the heart aching bottom of it all. We even see it in ourselves. Sometimes we disappoint ourselves with how we express what love is and other times we feel that it is the best we have to offer. The lines are blurred, we didn’t know love was such a paradox while still able to maintain such a desirable and shiny impression among all people. We collectively set off to discover true love, but while it is all too easy to deem the path to true love as a one-way tunnel, we don’t know if what we seek is waiting for us in the end. Or maybe, love is behind a door that others seem to already have the key to. So, what is love?

[ * The End * ]

[Writing Editor: Shubhay Mishra]