Ask yourself,
Go on,
go right ahead and ask yourself,
Where’s the shame behind your hiding games?
Whose to blame for burying the pain?
You’ll find no one to frame,
No one but your Shadow-Self.
Now, ask yourself,
Go on,
go right ahead and ask yourself,
Where’s the shame in turning the tables?
In recreating your brighter fable
In refusing to remain; no matter the pain,
Hidden behind your Shadow-Self.
Now, remind yourself,
Go on,
go right ahead and remind yourself,
There’s no shame in whatever the game,
be it illness or pain,
Only resilience and strength,
When you step into the light and embrace
Life without the Shadow-Self!
Go on…”You are stronger than you’ll ever know.” 💝
Did you ever have a Shadow-Self? How did you turn the tables on your Shadow-Self? What did stepping into the light feel like?
Much love,
Marie xx
Create Space 
October 2, 2018 at 3:09 pm
Beautifully written & a very interesting perspective. Quite true too, about “There’s no shame in whatever the game, be it illness or pain, Only resilience and strength”, rather than putting on a front, hiding yourself, living without being true to yourself and as you wish. Love this, Marie! x
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October 2, 2018 at 5:23 pm
Thank you so much Caz I’m delighted with your reaction to it! I think there comes a time when you just can’t keep up the pretence any longer and you have to cast off the shadow. I have to say I’m so relieved to be doing just that!
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October 2, 2018 at 6:03 pm
I’ve always tried to embrace my shadow-self, maybe a bit too much at times lol.
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October 2, 2018 at 9:31 pm
Thanks Maranda for sharing your experience!
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October 2, 2018 at 7:50 pm
This is beautiful Marie! Casting off that shadow self can be so liberating, can’t it?
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October 2, 2018 at 10:47 pm
Thank you Terri, I’m glad you think so! Yes it has started to turn the tide and bring about something better.
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October 4, 2018 at 7:30 pm
Absolutely beautiful!❤
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October 4, 2018 at 8:30 pm
Thank you so much, Richan…have I spelt your name correctly? Please excuse me if not. I’m glad this resonated with you!
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October 4, 2018 at 8:31 pm
Haha.. Almost correct! 😉 It is Richa! 🙂
And yes, loved your piece!🙏❤️
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October 4, 2018 at 8:34 pm
Glad you loved it Richa! I admire your dedication to blogging!
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October 5, 2018 at 10:30 pm
First let me say that your poem is beautiful. Secondly, it made me think hard which is tantalizing but also scary. The shadow self reminds me of that story about the 2 wolves and the grandfather – who wins? – The one you feed (good vs evil). I think Debbie Ford wrote about the shadow self, didn’t she? Did you ever read her books? I remember a part in one of her books which had that same story, but her version was that we accept the shadow self so that it doesn’t become a starving wolf that tries to take over. (Granted I’m butchering her analogy sorry). But that was what I got from it. It’s been a long time since I read it though so I may not have it correctly worded.
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October 6, 2018 at 10:04 am
Janie, I love your comment and it’s hasn’t butchered anything, the opposite, it’s added another perspective. I’m so glad you found it beautiful, tantalising and also scary. I never dreamt my writing could have such a profound emotional effect! I will check out Debbie Ford, I’ve not heard of or read her work. Xx
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October 6, 2018 at 12:57 pm
Let me know what you think of her…thanks Marie! xx
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October 28, 2018 at 6:57 pm
This is so beautifully and wisely written, Marie. So much of it resonates with me. You know my latest posts, so you know why. There is something very powerful in claiming back one’s inherent power and right to happiness. I myself have hidden behind a veil of excuses and lived a shadow life, so to say, thinking that my misery and my permanent struggle was all my sad childhood’s fault. As I have realized, it wasn’t the sad childhood’s fault, but the sad childhood story’s (!) fault. It was what I told myself about it and what I thought it meant for my future. It takes a lot of resilience and strength to step out of a sad story and into the yet unwritten story of a lighter future, and a lot of courage, too, I would add. You captured this really well in this poem.
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October 28, 2018 at 8:28 pm
Thank you so much for your encouraging comment! I’m so glad my poem speaks to you and you are right, there is power and peace and freedom in being true to ourselves and being our best self! The Crucial C’s..connect, capable, count, & courage are the key. You might find this plain talking link interesting… http://adlerandlove.blogspot.com/2012/04/crucial-cs.html?m=1
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February 25, 2019 at 9:40 am
You capture the dark and lightness of us human beings well here. Thanks for sharing! I am a Creative Life Coach and have a poetry blog in case you have time to read? http://www.peacockpoetryblog.wordpress.com and I am also on Instagram as #coachingcreatively, let’s follow each other if you use this medium? Have a good day? Sam 🙂
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February 25, 2019 at 10:20 am
Hi Sam, thank you for your affirming feedback and I’ll happily pop over to your blog. I don’t use Instagram at present but maybe soon. Have a good day too. Le grà, Marie
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February 25, 2019 at 10:29 am
Thanks Marie and lovely to connect! 🙂
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