Identity Poem

Identityby Julio Noboa Polanco
Let them be as flowers,
always watered, fed, guarded, admired,
but harnessed to a pot of dirt.

I'd rather be a tall, ugly weed,
clinging on cliffs, like an eagle
wind-wavering above high, jagged rocks.

To have broken through the surface of stone,
to live, to feel exposed to the madness
of the vast, eternal sky.
To be swayed by the breezes of an ancient sea,
carrying my soul, my seed,
beyond the mountains of time or into the abyss of the bizarre.

I'd rather be unseen, and if
then shunned by everyone,
than to be a pleasant-smelling flower,
growing in clusters in the fertile valley,
where they're praised, handled, and plucked
by greedy, human hands.

I'd rather smell of musty, green stench
than of sweet, fragrant lilac.
If I could stand alone, strong and free,
I'd rather be a tall, ugly weed.

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EQ: What does it mean to be an Insider or an Outsider?

In a stereotypical sense, to be an "insider" is to be the 'popular' one. The one that everybody knows, and treats well. Whereas being an "outsider" is to be the 'outcast'; the person looking in through the window. Though, realistically speaking, is it really that much better to be the insider? Perhaps, the insider is the person looking out through the window. I think that being an insider requires many expectations, and does not allow much room for change. However, an outsider, without having much expectations to be something, has a lot of room to explore, grow, change.

This poem is a perfect example of being an insider and an outsider. In this poem the flowers are the insiders and the weed is the outsider. Where the flowers are pampered with water sprinkled upon them daily, and being adorn by all those who pass by. These flowers are expected to be looked at, an eye catcher if you will, and the minute they begin to wilt a lot, they will be replaced with new flowers. On the otherhand, the weed that is standing outside on the cliffs, has survived through rainstorms, heavy snowfalls, and has gotten to experience the beautiful rays of sunshine. It stands "strong and free" (21), and unlike the flowers, will not be replaced because it is no longer good enough to be an insider. Perhaps being an outsider, isn't all that bad at all.