Intent matters

Posted on by Reena Saxena

intent matters
when you hold me up to the world
Trust shatters
with the littlest sleight of hand

I know the difference
between stardom in the sky
and being a puppet
helpless in the stratosphere

What is closeness
if not a gamble,
a wager on tenderness
against the weight of change?

I’ll let go of your hand
before the crack widens
shed flowers in spring
but let my roots deepen

Poetics – Chagall

Image credit – Oil painting by Marc Chagall

13 thoughts on “Intent matters”

  1. Those last two stanzas are weighted with emotion though the words themselves are light and seemingly easily rendered by the persona, and that’s the paradox that captures the painting so well. So good, Reena.

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  2. You captured the whole image in just these lines, Reena:

    ‘I know the difference
    between stardom in the sky
    and being a puppet
    helpless in the stratosphere’

    and I love the final stanza.

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  6. This poem is delicate, introspective, and emotionally layered in a way that lingers long after reading it. What stands out immediately is the quiet precision of the language — every line feels intentional, restrained, and deeply felt without ever needing to overexplain itself.

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