Poppy Road Review: Normal by Mark Tulin
— poppyroadreview.blogspot.com/2019/09/normal-by-mark-tulin.html
Normal by Mark Tulin
Normal is safe
but boring to others
like a slow-cooker of death;
normal is insidious,
roots itself in routine
and its 9 to 5 redundancy.
It wears dark suits
and plain, solid-colored dresses.
It is highly appropriate,
walks with a precise gait,
picks up its trash,
pleases its neighbors,
and never does anything spontaneous
without a hint of distemper.
And before you realize it,
your normal body is glowing
in the hereafter,
right next to Aunt Harriet
and Uncle Richard,
piled high in the tombstones
of meaningless dedication.
Crow On The Wire 
Your poem “Normal” prompted me to reflect on what normal means to me, which is quite different from how the poem’s speaker views it. For me, normal is good. There’s no drama, no conflict, freeing me up to be creative. We humans are a strange and varied lot, aren’t we?
Yes, normal could mean balanced and stable, but I think creative people see things or behave in ways that go against the norm. Many poets and artists tend to be eccentric.
I also wonder, Liz, if we don’t see the drama and conflicts that non-writers don’t notice or don’t pay attention to.
I think you’re absolutely right there. In my own case, I’m hypersensitive to other people’s feelings, which is good for writing fiction and poetry, but not for the day job.
When I was s therapist my hypersensitivity came in handy, but definitely not in my personal life.
I’ve experienced that as well.
😕
What’s normal, normal to one person doesn’t necessarily seem normal to another 🤔😉
Very true. I think the poem speaks to society’s version.
Yes!! The problem comes in when someone else–or society in general–imposes its version of normal on us, and we can’t choose or create our own.
🙂😎
Definitely . . .
Love your poem, Mark. It expresses well the meaninglessness of our lives when we succumb to the norms dictated by society.
Thank you Rosaliene.
great poem, Mark with a terrific punch at the end
Thank you, John.
not expecting the poem to end like that………sadly true. normal is not something I stive to be 🙂
I can’t be normal if I try. 🙂
the only way to be! 🙂
Yes. 😎☮️
Interesting and puts a new perspective what “normal” is. As a Libra, I appreciate the quietness of normalcy but not as dark as in this particular poem.
Thanks, Theresa. A lot of people prefer normal.