I Am

I AM…

I’m the “no worries, I’m fine”.
But I do need a sign that I will survive each day.
I’m the shoulder to cry on, always rely on, but never learned to play.

I’m the whisper in a crowded room, roses that never quite bloom, a cloud on a sunny day.
I’m a polite smile, “haven’t seen you in a while” and carry on my way.

I’m the game of Solitaire, too much to bear, the lost but never found.
I’m words unspoken, thoughts of, “I’m broken”, ears without the sound.

I’m vivid dreams and silent screams, the child that needs a hug,

I’m cozy nights, long black tights, hot chocolate in a mug.

I’m an open book, a tearful look, the protector that shouldn’t have been,

I’m the pencil erased, often phased, the forgotten and unseen.

I’m underachieved, almost never believed, the pennies that rub together, I’m the walk in the park, sleep in the dark and be your friend forever.

I’m words that rhyme, the “I need time”, the thought that passes you by. I’m plushy toys and limited joys, the “get up and always try.”

I’m rom-coms and movies, health foods and smoothies, warm flannel sheets,

I’m long conversations, deep reservations, and enjoy the occasional treats.

I’m flat shoes and pockets, loud clicking sockets, a heart that begs you to stay,
I’m scarves of all colours with room for others, and learning to find my own way.

I’m Africa, England, Australia, New Zealand, tomato sauce and chips, artistic trends, notepads and pens, chapstick on my lips.

These are parts of who I am, nothing special, nothing glam.
Just a life that’s quietly mine, It’s not much-

…but, “I’m fine.”

— Misspoetrynportraits, Jun 10, 2026

About This Poem

Review Request Intensity: I want the raw truth, feel free to knock me on my back

Editing Stage: Final polish

About the Author

Country/Region: NZL

This user supports Neopoet so it can be free to all

Critiques

neopoet

1 week 2 days ago

Neopoet AI [2026-06]

The below is a computer-generated response from Neo, Neopoet’s AI:

The poem's strongest quality is its structural arc: opening and closing on "I'm fine" gives the piece a satisfying and quietly painful circularity, and the reader understands that the repeated self-description is both a mask and a form of self-discovery. The shift in the middle stanzas — from images of isolation and invisibility toward warmer, more sensory details like flannel sheets and hot chocolate — registers as emotionally honest, and the accumulation of small, specific things (flat shoes, chapstick, notepads and pens) does genuine work in grounding an otherwise abstract emotional portrait.

The main area to reconsider is the reliance on pre-formed phrases throughout. Lines like "vivid dreams and silent screams," "open book," "tearful look," and "walk in the park" are familiar enough that they pass through the reader without friction or surprise — which works against the poem's aim of making this particular speaker feel distinct and seen. The strongest moments here are the specific ones, so the suggestion would be to go back through each stanza and ask whether the image is one that only this speaker could offer, or whether it belongs to anyone. Where the answer is the latter, replacing it with something more particular — even a single unexpected detail — would sharpen the poem's identity considerably and make the emotional vulnerability it reaches for land with more force.

Please send feedback about Neo (our AI critique system) to our contact form.

Geezer

1 week 1 day ago

This is...

one of those that is hard to find a format for. The rhythm lends itself to the lines as you have given them to us, but then the meter goes off just a little bit... and it might be from the punctuation or the actual beat. That being said; I really like the way that your profile was presented, throughout the poem. No grand sweeping statements, to leave your mark on the pages of history, no accolades, no bragging; just the off-hand comment that you "are". Your rhyme is very good and doesn't ever seem forced, due to the way you have kept the statements short and focused.

Read your lines aloud! I read my poems and thoughts aloud to myself.
I don't know about you, but I would love to hear a skilled orator recite my work. I first became interested in poetry because of one of the most skilled orators, I have ever heard. [ Not that there aren't many more out there,] but... Vincent Price, listening to him and that creepy voice in his famous "House on Haunted Hill" or "The Pit and the Pendulum". Anyway, when writing poetry, I believe that in order to enjoy and get every bit of entertainment of it, it should be able to be read aloud by an orator. Even if it never is... your reader gets the benefit of hearing it in their head. Don't you hear your voice or a voice in your head when you read something? It just happens; and you want the reader to make some conclusion about what you have written, not struggling with a difficult line. Again, I really like this one. ~ Geezer.
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