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Mirror Mirror On The Wall And Other Poems

By Joan Penn
mirrormirror

Illustration by Damehi Laloo

Mirror Mirror On The Wall

Why must you be so candid,

so cruel? Why can’t you censor

the inexorable passage of time?

Why couldn’t you

veil harsh reality,

soften the image,

blur the lines

between fiction and fact,

function more like a mirror animated by Disney,

project magic, and with a single glance transform me

into a princess, pretty as a portrait, and transport me to a dance

at the prince’s grand palace? Oh, Mirror, Mirror on the wall,

why do you frown on fantasy?

Why be such a stickler for reflecting

every flaw, every wrinkle, every blemish,

without regard for the viewer’s vanity.

Consider my feelings.

Consider the totality

of my humanity.

Why only reflect what’s skin deep?

Do you lack imagination?

Is there a crack in your perception?

Why can’t you display the vast array

of attractive characteristics that exist

beneath the surface?

Oh, Mirror, Mirror on the wall,

there’s so much more to me

than meets the eye.

Kindly reflect on that!

For The Defense

Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth,

and nothing but the truth…?

Oh, no, no, no, no, Your Honor. I relish embellishment.

Wishful thinking informs my testimony, not as duplicity,

but as tried-and-true survival tactic. I prefer to fabricate

far-fetched fables, sandpaper the sharp-edges of facts,

furnish fictional statistics, colorfully crayon the plot

of what might otherwise sound like a shady history. 

Please view my responses as Magritte inspired,

rather than as Salvador Dali surrealistic

distortion. My version of “What is”

riffs on reality. With feet on the ground,

and head in the clouds, my testimony

lies in imaginative vocabulary

that creates a picture of

a law-abiding citizen.

That’s my story, Your Honor,

and although embroidered with

idiosyncratic contradictions,

I intend to stick to it,

refuse to amend it,

plead not guilty

to charges of

perjury, and trust

you’ll find my position justifiable,

and with this as closing statement,

I request that case be dismissed.

Defense rests…


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Posted On: December 19, 2022
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