Narcissus

Gazing into the water’s depth, I see not fish or stone,
I only have eyes for what is my own
My form and face, both grace the smooth pale surface
My head swimming with my thoughts and my beliefs,
I realize the man in the mirror water is the same as me.
I look at him, expecting to be filled with pride, and yet,
I feel only envy. 
I scowl at him, trying to get him to go away,
But he does not.
He simply scowls back at me, as if mocking me.
His face, I’ll never have as much poise as his. 
Drip!
Drop!
The rain now plops and drips and drops and pitters and patters down unto the earth
And it strikes the man in the mirror water 
Ha! 
There! Now your face is uglier than mine!
I can only imagine the agony he faces.
And yet, when the deluge finally ceases, 
And I stand over him gloating,
He too stands there defiant,
With that devilishly prideful stare of his.
And too, his expression darkens when he sees that I have lived through the wild storm.
At last, I resolved to leave, 
Though it angered me that I would be leaving someone out in the world beautiful enough to challenge me.
And so I stayed, looking back at the man in the mirror water,
Unable to strike him, unable to ever make him less beautiful than me.
Till time itself ended.

Copyright © Davis Mills | Year Posted 2022

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