Sometimes
I see myself as just a mother.
I pick up a smile on my shoulder,
Carrying my day only with a motherly feeling.
Sometimes
I see myself as a shy girl,
Filled with imagination,
Brighter than the oil lantern hanging from a low ceiling
Covered in the village\'s fresh air.
Sometimes
In the layers of walking on a busy street,
I see myself empty, trying to figure out the meaning of life\'s duties.
Yet, constantly, in and out of my existence
Enriched with love and life
I see myself as the keeper of my destiny
A teacher for my wisdom
A friend to my loneliness,
A lover of my poetry,
With hot blood running freely into my veins.
Shahla Latifi
December, 2024