Poetry - The Scars of Time

Photo by Denny Müller on Unsplash

The Scars of Time

by Marilyn R. Wilson

Perfection.
I emerged from my mother's womb -
PERFECT. Well almost perfect.
Two Eyes, a nose, a mouth.
Arms and legs? Flawlessly formed.
A spine that ran straight and true.
The ears? Well a glitch there.
An extra earlobe sticking out
which doctors quickly excised.
After that - Perfection!

I mastered crawling, then walking,
and EUREKA - began to speak.
Riotous playtimes ensued ad nauseam.
That, of course, lead to the usual
lumps, bumps and childhood injuries.
I even broke my collar bone twice.
Some damages healed quickly, but
others took time and intervention.
Scar after scar built a visual record,
a roadmap of my physical being.

Life also brought invisible scars.
Traumas also exacted their toll
along my oh so human journey.
Harsh words, unreal expectations,
"You're damaged, broken, wrong,
your beliefs an utter travesty."
Every damning word of rejection said
left me ever more bruised and broken,
creating emotional scars hidden deep within.
Self acceptance vanished into thin air.

The passage of time brought new hope.
I grew into my power and took control.
Old lies were released with great relief.
Souls who still repeated them were banished.
My inner voice became stronger and surer,
and my heart started singing joyfully.
I have returned to the person I was at birth.
displaying my scars of time proudly as
they are what brought me back to me.
I am again the person I was born to be.