Shrinking Violets Poem by Aniruddha Pathak

Oh to be gentle in a world so loud!
Suspect, distrusted and much derided,
Touch-me-not-shy long under misty cloud:
Whom, Darwin dismissed ‘with odd state of head',
Jane Austin whilst gave shyness broader scope,
Calling it ‘moral, mental-borne disease',
And Freud, his fame fetching for men no rope,
With dream mind's subliminal twist of his,
He smelt of ‘displaced love of self-scored goals',
To where no fancy disposition was,
Poking fun at them, scoring birdie holes,
He saw somewhat hazy gossamer gauze!
And violets nigh sensitive to blame,
Besieged, shrunk with self-deprecating shame.

Perchance, shyness attracts public unease,
And yet we birds of feather are by far,
Men seldom unto common mould can squeeze,
Some dream of strange wings of a lone star;
So, let me offer them this goodly bliss—
That, shy souls often more inventive are,
Though sensitive nigh to a gawking gaze,
Tolerant are they still to worldly ways.
Mistaking plane shyness as being cold,
Aloof, and worse still somewhat arrogant,
And valuing those that be loud as bold,
A mark me seem of a tad ignorant.
Yet, let the world in ignorant bliss bask,
I marvel at my task— them to unmask.

Okay, I'm a touch-me-not violet,
Not so shy still, hiding hind cloak of veils,
Nor introvert with a lazy mind-set—
But with gifts to fertilise fecund skills
That may elude talkatively inclined,
Who, in loners, lack of social skills find.
Some greats do confess to ‘fainting with fears'
Ere speaking to the so-called loud speakers!
I know violet's shyness has no'ne hurt
But them—I too am cosy in my skin,
To keep flowers natural, verdant green,
This scarce can be claimed by an extrovert.
So then, O let me love my solitude,
And as being inventive, let me brood!
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This piece is a set of three sonnets in praise of the shy—shrinking violets. Its contents may find its reflection in two recent books brooding about bashfulness: The Man who mistook his Wife for a Hat, by Oliver Sacks; and Shrinking Violets: The Secret Life of Shyness, by Joe Moran. These books advocate that the shy should get a better deal, for they tend to be more creative. And musing about them, I feel elated.
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Musings | 01.03.2017 |