Thursday, August 2, 2007

chains of conformity

Color in the lines, my sweet--
It's what "good" children do.
They never question,
Never try
To create something new.
You wouldn't want to rock
The boat!
Dear me--
We might all drown!
So stay within the lines,
My pet.
Don't let the others down.

copyright 2007 AHCaffrey

8 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi, I love this poem. It sums up the world we live in I think.

Thank you for visiting my blog - I remember that feeling of waiting in vain for someone to call... it felt like the end of the world at the time!!

The Quoibler said...

Dear FunkyMunky:

Adore your name! It's a hoot... and I enjoyed my visit to your blog. It's one I'll return to again!

As for the poem--I tried to describe how deeply ingrained the fear of being "different" is for most people. And it starts early in life, unfortunately. Color in the lines indeed! NEVER! :)

Angelique

Beth said...

Thank you for visiting my blog as well, Angelique. I am one of those terrible parents who made my children color in the lines, but alas, their creativity could not be squashed. Ha!

Agree with the above on waiting.

Nita said...

Funny, we were just discussing that subject 'coloring in the lines' the other day. A classmate of my daughter's didn't when they were in school, and still doesn't today. I try to get my grandchildren notebooks of plain paper so they can draw and color their own creations.

Beth said...

Oh goodness, you're the one who wrote "The Inheritance" in the contest? I loved the description of the children. I voted for it also, but I wrote this right at Jason's place. Just figured out who you were.

The Quoibler said...

Beth ~ You found me out! :) Yep, I'm the nut who penned "The Inheritance." It was tons of fun... and now you can see how bizarre my mind really is!

Nita ~ You know what I've started to do with my son? Use a traditional coloring book as a guideline only. We create sunglasses on characters, hats on dinosaurs, and flowers and clouds. It's too much fun!

Anonymous said...

I love this poem. A gem.

The Quoibler said...

Kate:

Welcome and thank you! I appreciate the feedback and will be stopping by your blog soon!

Incidentally, my son still complains that his coloring is "outside of the lines", but I always counter with the word, "So?"

I loathe conformity more and more with every year! Geesh. I'm old. :)

Angelique