Selfie
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Hair swept back, lighting just right, phone in hand,
Camera on, portrait mode enabled.
Click, click, click.
Walking in the street, waiting between commercials, standing in line.
Anywhere, anytime.
Narcissus, handsome as he were
so attractive, named after him are flow’rs
posted an instagram selfie, did he
waiting for his followers’ attention, though fleeting
poor Narcissus: the ‘likes’ donned upon him
What is the true meaning of this SeLfy of SeLfme?
All I really know is that it takes care of me.
With its filters I change who I am,
I am confident and free, but I am not me.
So, Please SeLfie help me.
Take the picture.
Too high.
Too low.
Just right.
But what's wrong?
Your nose is too big,
Your smile looks weird,
And your hair looks bad.
Take it again.
And again.
Eyes torn, eyes bright; reaching
Hands clasped, outstretched; speaking. They tell my story, they lived my days: of teary-eyed nights but persistent days,
spent studying, searching, for the ones who helped me see,
Roses are red
Violets are blue
My name is Nick
But for some odd reason
Some call me Nickypoo
Click, snap, image captured
Edit, draw, redirected
Delete, delete
Photo recaptured
Upload now, photo posted
This is me #nomakeup
Eyes of slivers, wrinkles, dried tears
This is I #nofilter
I have freckled cheeks and chapped lips.
I have never known what to do with my hair,
and I'm sure I sweat my makeup off before lunch everyday.
I am not pretty.
Because pretty is a flower,
My vanity has become an army
Pictures purporting to show unparalleled perfection
Without the filter there is a girl
still just as beautiful
although the picture has changed
she has not
she still has a mind as vast as a universe
she still has a heart as deep as ocean
Mayfair, Valencia Sierra and X-Pro;Once I apply the perfect filter Then I can post this photoBut with these effects I feel like a sham
Click!
Another selfie taken
Click!
Another selfie deleted.
My eyes are too big
My lips are too pouty
My hair is too curly
Click!
No!
It's not perfect!
Slumber. Crema. Ludwig. Aden. Perputa. Amaro. Mayfair. Rise. Hudson. Valencia. X-Pro ll. Sierra. Willow. Lo-Fi. Earlybird. Brannan. Inkwell. Hefe. Nashville
Every store, show, event-- everytime anything exciting appears
Let me take a selfie.
When did these words become such a despreate part of life?
When did engaging in social time become selfie time?
Imagine a world without filters
Where people see you for who you really are
Don't worry about hiding that scar
Because that is a part of who you are
Be happy with yourself and forget what others think
Who am I really without a filter?
Because with it, I feel as if I have shelter
I don`t want them to see the real me
Yet, I feel like I should let it be
1977, Hudson, Walden
Underneath I have a dirty heart
You all will fail, so I can win
I am not clean and cut like my selfies
But I am rough and tough like so many
I do not really care about you
So what if I lie and say that I do?
The Authentic Me
by Hunter E Jones
Does the selfie define me?
Am I worthy? Am I pretty?
Why take a Selfie?
Is it because we feel confident
We love how we look
So, why do we cover up with condiments?
Filters, edits, highlights, and more
Be yourself
That's all I'm asking for
Ugly, repulsive, boring, plain
Is what we believe others see in us.
But through filters there is nothing we gain,
It’s our own mind that creates such a fuss.
Take away the photoshop and filter,
Click! Snap! Flash!
Damn, I still look fat.
Maybe if I use...No
Maybe if I put on...No
Snap! Snap! Click!
Oh great! Is that a fucking zit?
Rarely do I see stretch marks, bruises, and scars in the media
The absence of flaws on models and celebrities is extremely concerning
It implies that imperfections are a shameful appearance
the words didn't come easy
when i sat down to ... write
I almost claimed writer's block and gave up without a
fight "no filter", my topic
a pretty broad umbrella
I am flawless from my head to my toes
No clothes or filters can better what’s already gold
I shine so bright and I don't need to be told
For its my beauty within, that makes me so bold
Authenticity is a rarity.
When looking clearly you often don't see
The parts of me I try to hide
From you and from society.
Take a look behind the curtain,
Glimpse the person you thought you knew,
Quick take a picture
What can we see?
An everlasting flawess flitered picture of me
Hair done
Skin soft
Eyebrows on fleek
Eyes tipped
Black dip, winged tip on me
A picture tells a thousands words,
but can you read the emotions behind each smile?
Can you hear the hardships that their eyes express?
My wide bright eyes that seem to shine like the sun turn to dark clouds of gray.
Highly underrated
Highly anticipated
Got one goal that is being the greatest
Prove doubters wrong when I make it
Been plotting this moment since my momma was pregnant
Behind the filter I am Sylvia.
Behind the likes and "thumbs up" I am Lucy.
Before the mascara I am a daughter.
Named by my free spirited parents'
Name sake of shimmering light in the forest.
Behind these eyes of mine is a person, just an ordinary person who always feels she never fits in.She takes pictures and finds uplifting quotes to put on her pictures so she can look at them and think she is beautiful.
"I" is edgy, "I" is hot.
"I" is exciting, "I" is loud.
"I" is daring, "I" is spontaneous.
I am not "I". I am a completely different me.
I am easily entertained. I am self-conscious.
I am quiet. I am nervous.
So you wear the newest fashion, the camera flashes, but there is no passion.
The color of your lips and eyes are rouse; does anyone even know the real you?
Looking in the mirror you'll see something that naturally I think is horific,
cheeks too wide, mouth too small, eyes although pretty in color are not big enough to stand out.
The "selfie" is a mask,
It's our way of keeping our eyes from the task.
A filter for every wish or need,
And replacement for a discarded and broken memory.
We become Pretty, Popular, a glowing pearl,
How can I tell you who I am?
Through the snap of a single square.
It is hard enough when face to face,
Look closer if you dare.
How can I show you who I am?
With a simple crooked smile.
More contrast here
A bit of saturation there
Is this an interesting way to stare?
What’s the correct stance for a bathroom pose?
Does this shirt convey my knack for prose?
It’s up to followers I suppose
Hair a mess
no make-up, no stress,
wearing jeans and a shirt
the same thing you'd probably wear to work.
I still smile and be who I am
I hated the poetry sections of my high school English classes
I have Shakespeare to blame
Never couldeth I understandeth his tactics
So, naturally, with this I ask that God help me
The way I see it is that I am IT.
You may not see it from my perspective but check this,
I see my natural my hair,
I see my curves lovely, clear, and bare.
I see a queen.
I see me one way.
You see me another way.
You see me:
Short with brown hair,
Thick in the legs but perfectly shaped body,
A face of an angel,
Pretty brown eyes and soft brown skin,
As I stared into the eyes of a female
I noticed that her eyelashes were long,
Only on one eye and in
The other
A bead of water was forming,
Just about to boil over, roll over her lid
And
Me.
I am me.
I would be me.
No matter the filter on the camera
I will remain me.
I could be dressed to the nines
and choose the filter that hides all the imperfections
I will still be me.
Who am I
Behind the filter of a picture
I am a man with very much to remember
I have a story that is not yet over
Black man living past 18 is the luck of a 4 leaf clover
The story that is not told
One thousand questions.
And maybe one answer.
Each day is a new adventure.
Curiosity killed the cat, but fuels me.
Each task I do is designed to see
If I can answer one of my questions.
Round cheeks
Red from continuously smiling
The first thing you notice
Seen without even trying
Green eyes
Glasses that show my world reflected
Supposed to be this window
I only have one shot at this,
So I want to do it right.
How does one take a selfie,
Depicting an authentic sight?
There’s a woman there, I can see her.
She stands out to me, it’s her eyes.
Something about the way she’s staring back at me grabs me.
My skin is brown and the iris of my eyes are darker. My hair is kinky and nappy but overall I am happy. I could wear a weave, colored contacts, and skin bleach, but that is not the outer me.
Who am I?
I am me.
No filters or color corrections needed.
Creative, Imaginitive, Intelligent.
Selfie with this,
selfie with him,
selfie with her.
New technology established cameras front and back,
How does it feel to be trapped behind a screen?
In a world without dimension where perception is key.
We iron our hair and puff out our lips in hopes that they don’t see
What’s real?
On which hour on thy social media, thee wilt findeth a miniature of oneself,
But what lie beneath the mask, the true visage?
If thy mask be uncovered, what wilt thou findeth in thyself?
Through an Instagram lens its often hard to see the bigger picture
Every post is worth a thousand words
And some of them are meant to injure
Where did what's right and what's beautiful become so intertwined?
When did I becomed defined only by my jaw line?
Why does #MasterCleanse and #LookingThin appear more than #Eating and #LetLoose?
I am everything I could ever ask
When time flits away my inner beauty thrives
Guiding me to the infinite fountains
So who is the man in the mirror?
The real one- you know? The one behind the filter
hidden away, disquised
because no matter how hard he tries...
There is something different--
Sometimes, my teeth seem slightly rotten with a honey residue considering, weekends I forget to brush,
Or how my hair waves in this condescending way when I clinch my fist together.
When did "what filter should I use?" become a real question?
Is natural lighting not enough?
The real beauty is in your eyes,
Not in the tint of the screen.
Let me take a selfiewith a good camera, not my beat up iPod with the crack across the screenBut a good camera, a good nikon or canon with good focusWhere you can set the exposure with a tap of your finger
Wherever I am,
As long as I’m out,
Over the blue waters I go
To catch some trout.
But never after a full moon.
That’s when they have their feasts.
With the moonlight shining over the water,
Snap !
Zoom, get centered more, then delete.
Twenty to fifity shoots until we get the one that is unique.
Taking photos for others to critique.
Will it be Instagrammed, 50 likes
buttons pressed to show approval
instapopularity, we can accept ourselves now
filtering out sincerity in acid blue
Will it be framed on the wall
We come to learn the things, for which you have concerns;
We're here to seek the lives we dare not speak;
There is a thing called life, things that don't resolve around one night;
