Another brilliant piece from a GUNNAS WRITING MASTERCLASS WRITER
I am vigilant as I scan the room
And extraordinarily quick to assume
That other people want and need my help
It’s kind of something I’ve always felt
So when I see that someone is about to sneeze
I seize the opportunity to people please!
I pass him a tissue but he shakes his head
And pulls out a hanky to use instead
I smile at a woman but she looks away
Because she doesn’t feel like being social today
I sit there incredulous until I start to see
That my perception of people’s needs are just a projection of me
Oh shit. Do I really have the audacity
To think that no one has the capacity
To take care of themselves without me?
That’s definitely an uncomfortable thing to see
Maybe all the needs I perceive and pre-empt
Are simply my ego’s masterful attempt
To masquerade my own desperate need to be needed
Yep, this stuff is pretty deep-seated
In the past I’ve found love by being nice
But avoiding conflict has a price
Because discomfort and everything that makes me squirm
Are actually what I need to grow and learn
If I am really going to change
Two things in my mind need to rearrange
First I must trust people to ask for what they need
And wait for an invitation before I intercede
The second thing I must learn
Is that love isn’t something I have to earn
I don’t have to pay compliments, placate or please
I can be loved just for being me
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