Poetry: So This Is Me

I stare at your brown eyes 

And I find love in those murky depths

I listen to your voice

And I find the beauty of unseen mountains 

You give your truth 

And I drink it up 

You draw clear lines 

And I see they’re healthy

But this is me

This is broken me

The one with pieces glued back together in odd places

The one who had their brain removed and reconfigured 

A thousand times before you knew my name 

This is me

I live in fear beneath your thoughts 

I strive for approval you don’t owe 

I crawl from my skin without your pat on my leg 

I wail in fury at your distance

Because this is me

This is the child kicked onto her knees 

This is the weakling taught to lick boots

This is the daughter of a legacy which will never die 

This is the person too fucked for you to know 

This is me 

As best as I can know her

For now. 

And I hope you can hold on 

I hope you see my wings unfold. 

Don’t give up yet.