I like how you interpreted it. It definitely can mean that. I see it. On a subconscious level perhaps I didn’t even recognize, it’s very possible. 

This means something different for me, though.

Thank you so much for checking it out!

Is this some form of representation of how we as humans keep going in circles never reaching a destination or goal?

I love this! Yes, I do hope I get to that place. I hope you do too. Thank you so much for your comment.

It's my first comment on this subreddit, sorry, if it's not the greatest prediction, but your poem probably shows a great story about yourself, where you are trying to be someone you want to be but can't quite reach, you try and try but you still haven't reached that point.

You think/dream all the time about that and want to reach that point even more because of that obsession, you are tired of it and just hope to reach the point you wish to reach.

I am so I love with how each person sees the poem in a different way and truly, all of them are correct.

Thank you, thank you for your comment!

For some reason this to me looks like catching yourself before you fall. You see yourself on one end and you try to catch the slipup and hold on to its tails but you can never quite get ahold of it so you keep chasing. I pictured a dog originally running after it's own tail but I see dogs as grounded. A dragon is up-high and flying. If it doesn't catch itself then eventually it may fall. 

Another possibility I see is the potential each person has. A dragon is fierce and it's powerful but highly stubborn. So, I can see someone seeing their potential at the back of themselves trying to catch it but never reaching. So they are in constant motion hoping to reach it before it flies away from them. 

Or they simply feel like they are riding on as the phrase goes "their coat tails," so they might feel like an imposter chasing after their own success but never really reaching it. 

&#x200B;

Nice poem! You can interpret it in a variety of ways.

Your criticism is very valid, beginner or expert. I am a beginner, too. I still haven’t caught myself so I can’t take it any further, unfortunately!

Now for the critic part.

1 I think the story should go on just a bit longer. If your nr goal is to "Catch yourself", what would your next goal be after "catching yourself"

2 there is something missing in between the 2nd and 3rd row or 3rd row could have been worded differently.

It's interesting to read a story that "goes down in speed/slows down with every row" (not in a bad way, hard to explain)

I like, that it's easily understandable.

Just reminding you that I am no expert and I'm in early early alpha stage of my poetry study.

Thank you so much! I am so glad I posted this one. I had no idea people would pull so many different themes from it. It has become a mirror for the reader as well as the author, for sure.

I interpret this as the dragon seeking to know itself better. I like how it's short, but still effective. It's pretty playful and reminds me of how puppies sometimes chase their tails. At the end it's like, you think that when you've finally found yourself, you'll be content. I really like how you don't have to write an essay for it to get to your readers on an emotional level. Keep up the great work!

Very, very true! All in all, I appreciate the feedback. Positive, negative, or somewhere in between. I wanted to start sharing my work to get feedback so that I can improve and grow. Also to share the expression. I like to write just for my myself but it’s so motivating to get criticism from such talented individuals on the sub.

Just so grateful for the opportunity, honestly.

Thanks for the thoughtful push back on my feedback, Meep\_Morph! There's obviously no objective rule on length. Poems can be anywhere from a letter (surely, someone has pulled that off! Right?) to an infinite homeric epic of pages and pages.

Imo, the aim should be for each work to be the best that it can be. Whether you put one button on your wool pullover or three is up to you, the only thing other readers can do is offer you their own two cents on what is fashionable in *their* own eyes. In other words, I'm your friend, and we are about to hit the town together. I'm telling you to keep the pocket watch, but ditch the ascott. Do you ditch the ascott and keep the pocket watch >!or not?!<

Whether you listen (or care) is mostly a reflection of your own (rational or irrational) self-confidence and your (irrational or rational) respect for my own taste and opinion. It also might be relevant what *my* intentions are in providing you said advice. Do you think I have *your* best interests a

Very interesting! I actually thought this was a bit too short. Good to know going forward. Thanks!

Fantastic opening line! My only suggestion to take or leave would be to cut some words. I'd cut "but never in reach" and "and hold on so tightly." It's hard for me to articulate why, but I think they aren't necessary to establish meaning, and I think it sounds more mysterious and confident without it.

Yes. “Never doing enough” is a great way to describe the feeling. Thank you.

Cyclical nature of life this poem can represent a multitude of things. Chases for desires or for goals, that feeling of never doing enough that sometimes stems from doing too much. Very succinct

Yes. I thought about my word choice as I was debating on posting but I felt like “running” and “chasing” was more appropriate for how I was feeling as I wrote this. 
I see how that can cause confusion.

Could your use of the term ‘running’ instead of flying be an attempt to personify the dragon? If so interesting choice as some readers may get confused

Thank you! I didn’t realize how open this was to interpretation, myself. And the interpretations are making me evaluate even further why I wrote this the way I did (the conscious intent versus the subconscious intent in my words). I feel a bit called out (in a good way).

This poem opens doors to so many great interpretations. For me it meant someone with great amounts of passion, afraid of escaping their comfort zone, thus holding themselves back. Well done.


Hello readers, welcome to OCpoetry. This subreddit is a writing workshop community -- a place where poets of all skill levels can share, enjoy, and talk about each other's poetry. Every person who's shared, including the OP above, has given some feedback (those are the links in the post) and hopes to receive some in return (from you, the readers).

If you really enjoyed this poem and just want to drop a quick comment, to show some appreciation or give kudos, things like "great job!" or "made me cry", or "loved it" or "so relateable", please do. Everyone loves a compliment. Thanks for taking the time to read and enjoy.

If you want to share your own poem, you'll need to give this writer some detailed feedback. Good feedback explains from your point of view what it was like to read the poem, and then tries to explain how the poem made you feel like that. If you're not sure what that means, check out our [feedback guide](https://new.reddit.com/r/ocpoetry/wiki/feedbackcritiques), or look 

YES. I was trying to capture that feeling. Feeling like your life is running away from you.

i love this. i often feel like i’m watching myself outside of my own body. this is a great visual of what this feels like!

I am the dragon chasing itself across the sky

Tail always in sight but never in reach

If I run fast enough, I can catch myself 

and hold on so tightly, I’ll never feel like running again

[two](https://www.reddit.com/r/OCPoetry/comments/xf3h0g/let_my_soul_be_baptized_in_your_beauty/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=ios_app&amp;utm_name=iossmf)

[one](https://www.reddit.com/r/OCPoetry/comments/xcqltd/lazarus_tanka/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=ios_app&amp;utm_name=iossmf)