Beneath the Veil of Vulnerability: Embracing Paradoxes

Morning whispering in my ears
Joy flights on sparrow wings
Calling me to choose myself
Rise up, awaken bright spirit!
No longer be the passive dreamer

Jagged rocks scrape tender soles
Thorns draw crimson maps on skin  
Signposts on the path within
Leading to the calm eye of storm
Where stillness dwells, beckoning  

Cocoon splitting, wings unfolding
Shedding skins of false belonging  
When chrysalis no longer holds
Bursting out in colors bold
Unapologetic, fierce and free

Silence speaks in tongues unknown
Secrets shared without a sound
Soul whispers gain clarity
Ears attuned receive the signs
Messages in moonlight shine

Once I clung to each breadcrumb
Begging for love’s tiniest morsels
Now I feast on my own hearth
Cooking joy’s nourishing meal
At table where my spirit heals

No longer kneeling as beggar
Cupping hands for trickles of care
I am the gushing waterfall
Overflowing with life force power
Quenching my soul’s thirst each hour

Through the tangled twisted forest
I blaze trails with heart’s compass
No guide but my inner knowing
Each step a leap of faith unfolding
As I uncover my own way  

Scattered seeds now gathering  
Pieces joining in patterns anew
Healing happens gradually
As I nurture myself kindly
And give myself what I need

I stop waiting to be rescued
From the dungeons I created  
Keys were in my hands all along
Unlock chains, fling open the doors!
Cross the bridge to unknown shores

Beyond the fog, endless ocean
Dancing playfully with the shore
I plunge joyfully into waves
Body caressed by water’s grace
I surrender and let go

Tingles of change in the wind
Whispers of courage on tongue
Sacred voice calls, “Awaken now!
Your time is here, your moment now
Choose you, and let the old fall.”

Once I tried to fit the mold
Trimmed my branches, muted colors
Now I grow just as I am
Wild, untamed, fiercely abloom
I belong here, I am home

Judger’s stones no longer bruise
Critic’s arrows miss their mark
Words once weaponized, now powerless  
My heart sealed from poisoned darts
I absorb only what nourishes

Ferns curl tenderly inward
Seeking center, finding home
I turn gaze inside, beloved
Parent self, child self reconciled  
Holding parts tender, gentle, mild

Splintered pieces reunite
Shattered soul remembering wholeness  
Healing happens quietly  
As I sit in simple silence
Honoring all that I am

I was so afraid of the dark
Now I rest in its velvet embrace  
Shadows teach what light obscures
Balance found in interplay  
Of dark and light, night and day

I watch patiently as river
Carves canyons with gentle persistence
Time and flow will change all things
As the acorn becomes the oak
I too will grow as I am meant

Once I carved myself to fit  
Jamming round pegs in square holes  
Now I craft my own spaces  
Designing life that welcomes me
As I am, wild and free

I peel back the layers slowly
Shedding who they wanted me to be  
Finding the seed of my true self
Buried under years of leaves  
Now awakening, ready to reach

No longer silencing my song  
Unsilencing the muted soul  
Opening once locked away rooms  
Releasing words trapped behind teeth
I sing my truth, bold and deep

Standing tall, limbs outstretched  
Swaying easy, flexible, strong  
I breathe in possibilities  
Exhale limiting beliefs  
Make space for my own unfolding  

Tearing down walls built from fear
Brick by brick, opening windows  
Sunshine streaming, warm on skin  
Hope takes root and grows within  
I feel joy breathing again

Once I rejected parts of me  
Desiring to be someone else  
Now I embrace all that I am
Crooked and misshapen is whole
I am enough, I am home  

Turning towards, not away  
Holding myself in loving gaze  
Seeing beauty in brokenness   
Healing happens gradually
As I rewrite my story, gently

I stop waiting for permission   
To take up space and breathe deep  
I belong here, am enough
Deserving of nurture and care  
Not armor but skin laid bare

Uncurl fingers clenched tight  
Jaw relaxes, brow unwinds  
I release needs to control  
Opening hands, body, soul  
Receive grace gently, humbly

Lost in the funhouse hall of mirrors  
Distorted views warp perception
Step outside! See yourself clear  
You are not those false reflections  
You are worthy beyond measure  

Come sit with me awhile, friend  
Two cups of tea, quiet companianship
No need to be anyone but you  
Relax into belonging here  
You are home, you are welcome

Plunging hands into cool earth  
Feeling strength and solidity  
I ground into my power  
Stand tall as ancient oak
Shedding doubts, I know my worth

Once I faded into background  
Afraid to stand for myself  
Now I speak, set down firm roots
Channeling earth’s boldness   
I take my place, claim my space

Gently peel back those old stories  
Examine their truths in light anew   
Hold with care this fragile learning   
Of where belief no longer serves
Make space for growth and change

Sit at the river’s edge awhile   
Watch how even stone changes shape   
What once appeared fixed, now flows  
Becoming more itself each day
This too shall morph, evolve, transform  

Sink feet into muddy banks
Let earth teach you, ground you  
In this moment, nothing matters   
But your breath and steady heart  
Alive and beating, playing its part

Lie back, watch clouds dance and play  
Their joy infectious, releasing  
Lightness rising, worries falling  
Cares dissolving in vast blue
Only this moment shining through

Hear friend, your truth matters
Your voice deserves to be heard  
These words may not be comfortable  
But closing off serves no one, nothing can grow  
Stay open, keep sharing your perspective

I see you friend, I hear your pain  
Your experiences are valid  
My own views do not invalidate yours  
Multiple truths can co-exist, be held gently together  
There is room for all our stories

Plant your roots down deep, friend
Stand tall in your truth without budging  
AND stay open to other’s experience  
Listen fully, seek to understand  
Find common ground to grow from

The path narrows up ahead  
Space for just one to pass through  
I pause so you may enter first  
Honoring your journey too  
Connected, we each find our way  

Hear my prayer, friend  
May we speak our truths boldly AND kindly  
With open hands and open hearts  
Making space for all voices to be heard  
With compassionate listening, tender holding  

My eyes see just one facet of the whole  
Yours reflect another angle, another truth  
One no more or less real than the other  
Together we expand our vision  
Creating something greater than each alone

Sit with me here in the gray  
Where binaries dissolve  
And complexity blooms  
Right/wrong gives way  
To holding multiple truths

Let us laugh together, friend
Find joy midst the contradictions  
Absurdity blooms when dogma hardens  
Staying supple, flexible, agile  
Keeps us in flow, open to change

Are we so set on proving our view right?  
Unwilling to admit our grasp is partial  
Believing if we just argue forcefully enough  
The other will crumple, surrender, see the light  
When has this approach ever born fruit?   

My friend, what if we dropped our swords?  
Laid down defenses, removed armor  
Became vulnerable, opened to understand  
Stepped into the unknown together  
Scared, but seeking connection  

These lines of difference we’ve drawn  
Serve only to separate, isolate  
In protecting our own small space  
We forfeit the chance to learn, grow  
Is there another way forward from here?

Come, let us approach gently, with care  
Remove labels, see each other anew  
Listen deeply, walk in the other’s shoes  
Understanding blossoms when planted with patience  
Watered by compassion, nurtured by love

I hear you, beloved friend  
I know your heart carries much pain  
Your words reflect valid wounds  
Help me understand where you stand  
So I may honor your journey, too

What if in place of lines of division  
We drew circles of belonging  
Wide enough to hold our differences  
Yet tight enough to be held together  
In shared vision, shared purpose

We wander here in desert sands  
Thirsty, seeking relief  
From the harsh heat of judgment  
Friend, what if we poured sweet waters  
Quenched each other, wet this parched earth

Come sit here friend, leave your shoes at the door  
Rest on this prayer mat stitched from patience  
Breathe in calm, breathe out anger  
Let armour fall away, carry no sword  
You are safe, you are welcome here

Can we lay down pride and self-righteousness?  
Step off the pedestals we’ve built  
Approach gently, begin anew  
Leaving certitudes aside  
Open once more to possibility  

With care let us unravel old threads  
Examine what stories we’ve woven  
Retain what serves growth and connection  
Compost the rest into fertile soil  
For planting seeds of a new way

Sit here friend, leave worries at the gate  
Breathe in this moment, breathe out fatigue  
Let each inhalation renew, revive  
No battle lines here, only soft edges  
Two souls meeting, ready to weave anew  

Let’s approach tenderly, with reverence
The ground we walk upon together
Knowing it holds years of hurt and violence  
Yet longing to cultivate anew  
With seeds of reconciliation

Perhaps the lines we’ve drawn are too harsh  
What if we smudged them with care, gently
Erasing not our histories, simply softening edges  
Blurring walls into meeting places  
Borders into spaces of exchange  

With hands open, palms upturned
Let us offer grace, seek common ground  
Share vulnerability, swallow pride  
Give voice to hurt, make space for healing  
Listening deeply, willing to be changed

Sit here with me friend, let down your hair  
Remove the veils, set aside Artifice  
Just be your authentic self  
I will hold space for you, listen with care
Honoring your dignity, your wholeness

Let us laugh together at certainties  
Smile at how we clench, afraid to lose grip  
Take a leap of faith into not-knowing  
Beginner's minds ready for newness  
Open hands grasping at nothing, finding everything

Will you gently unravel with me  
Loosening knots we've tied ourselves in  
Compassionately untangling stories that bind  
Opening to vulnerability, connection  
Weaving community from fragmentation  

Let us linger in spaces between  
In the fertile darkness, the dawn's blank canvas  
Before rushing to redraw lines  
Here, we craft new forms together  
In collaborative creation

Come, sit here friend, leave titles at the door  
No need for masks, pretense between us  
I see you, I hear you without judgement  
Tell me your story, I will hold its unfolding  
Wrap you in care as you unravel and rebuild

The road rises to meet our feet  
The path blooms as we walk together  
With care we tend the soil beneath
Planting seeds of hope and renewal  
Step by step healing what is divided

Let us gather in fertile soil  
Turning over old ground ready for new growth  
Lay down pride, take off masks  
Sow seeds of reconciliation  
Water with shared stories, nourished in listening

Around this fire of possibility  
Let us warm our open hands  
Flames melt armor, unlock hearts  
In darkness let shadows take shape  
Illuminated in shared truth telling  

With brush dipped in forgiveness  
Let us repaint sky’s blank canvas  
Sketching in spaces of belonging  
Erasing lines that divide, separate  
Borders give way to horizons expanding  

Let’s unfurl these scrolls between us  
Decipher together ancient wisdom  
Discard what no longer serves growth  
Retain timeless truths solid as mountains  
Building fresh vision on ancestral bones  

Come friend, leave titles at the door  
Sit here, simply be yourself  
Tell me your story without defense  
I will listen with unbarred heart  
Honoring your journey, holding complexity

These seeds we plant in silence
Watered by shared truth telling  
Sheltered in darkness, nurtured in care  
Grow intosaplings reaching for sunlight  
Becoming forests of belonging  

Let us linger at this river fork  
Before rushing to separate sides  
Wade into fluid middle spaces  
Where current meets stillness  
And fish weave between swallows in flight

With open hands, let us rediscover  
This shared ground beneath our feet  
Sacred earth we both tread upon  
With gentle steps retrace common roots  
Reconciling our interconnectedness

Let us unravel these knots patiently  
Taking time to loosen, unwind stories  
Find threads of common humanity  
Weaving into tapestries that hold complexity  
Many colors, textures, shapes in harmony

Sit here with me friend, leave ideas at the gate  
Bring only your open hands, tender heart  
Tell me your story without defending  
I will listen without judgment  
Honoring your integrity, dignity

Here friend, there is space for complexity  
Room for contradictions to coexist  
No need for facile clarity or easy answers  
Let us hold paradox, navigate nuance  
Remain open, walk humbly, sow peace

Let’s approach this shared ground reverently  
Knowing it holds pain we’ve both caused  
With care, tend these ancestral wounds  
Plant seeds of reconciliation, nurture regrowth  
So all may enjoy fruits of justice  

Around this fire, let us warm our souls  
Flames radiating compassion, melting pride  
Darkness illuminated in truth telling
Hearts unlocked, souls opened
Stories shared, histories honored

Let us sit here together, leave titles behind  
Remove pretense, masks, artificiality  
Just be, simply be yourself  
Tell me your story without defending  
I will listen with care, affirm your integrity

Here friend, contradictions can coexist  
Certainty dissolves into complexity  
Multiple truths shape collective growth  
Let us hold space for nuance in tension  
Navigating complexity with empathy  

Come, let us linger at this river fork  
Before flowing to separate streams  
Wade into the fluid middle spaces  
Where horizons meet and expand  
And swallows weave between fish swimming  

With wonder, let us rediscover  
This shared ground beneath our feet  
Sacred earth we both walk upon  
With gentle steps, trace interconnected roots  
Composting past hurts into new growth

Let us unravel old threads patiently  
Taking time to loosen, unwind stories  
Finding common humanity beneath  
Weaving new tapestries embodying complexity  
Many colors, textures, shapes in harmony

Come sit here friend, no walls between us  
Tell me your story without defense  
I will listen with heart receptive  
Holding space for growth and change  
Honoring the integrity of your journey  

Here, contradictions can coexist  
Rigidity gives way to complexity  
Let us hold paradox with empathy  
Navigating nuance with patience  
Remaining open, sowing renewal  

My friend, let us approach with care  
This shared ground we walk upon  
Where histories of pain are held  
With compassion, seek reconciliation  
Planting seeds of justice, cultivating equity

Let us gather around this healing fire  
Warming hands opened in vulnerability  
Darkness illuminated in truth telling  
Hearts unlocked, stories honored  
Envisioning renewal, reconciliation

Come, sit here with me, leave shoes at the door  
No need for pretense, persona or roles  
Just be yourself, bare and authentic  
Tell me your story without defending  
I will listen with heart open, affirming your dignity

Here, complexity and paradox unfold  
Multiple truths held in tension  
Rigidity dissolves into nuance  
Let us stay supple, open to flux  
Navigating change with empathy

My friend, gently let us rediscover  
This shared earth beneath our feet  
With care retrace interwoven roots  
Honor interconnectedness  
Plant seeds of renewal in fertile humility

Come walk with me here in liminal space  
Where horizons meet, expand, blur  
Before rushing to separate shores  
Let us linger midstream a while  
Listening, learning, sowing understanding  

With patience, let’s unravel old threads  
Taking time to unwind knotted stories  
Finding threads of shared humanity  
Weaving new tapestries embodying complexity  
Many textures, colors, shapes in harmony

Come sit here with me, friend  
Leave armor, titles behind  
Just be yourself, stripped bare  
Tell me your story without defending  
I will hold it with care, honoring your dignity

Here, paradoxes unfold into nuance  
Either/or gives way to mystery














   The poem is part of a full version found in the book “Homo Sapiens” Part Part I - XVIII, written by Mawphniang Napoleon. This book is part of the popular “Homo Sapiens” book series, which can be purchased online at various online bookstores, such as Amazon. The book is available for purchase for those who are interested in reading the complete version of the poem. Remember to get all the books from the “Homo Sapiens” series, as well as other books by the same author.   So, don’t hesitate and get a copy today from one of the many online bookstores.   Khublei Shihajar Nguh,  (Dhanewad  )(Thank you )