you have taken the price tag off.
you showed me to your mom
and let me meet your sister.
i met your 14-year-old terrier-
she wasn’t as pleased as the rest.
you brought me round your friends.
you kissed me- soft and hard.
you threw away the price tag,
and the box, and the receipt, and the warranty.
you showed me you will keep me for good,
not just till im worn out
or something better comes along.
time is so valuable
and ours is rich.

the first time i was assaulted
my mom said to me
“that’s what boys do when
they like you.”

i often think about this when
i wonder why she stayed
for 22 years
no matter how hard he hit her.

when you view life
more like a compass
and less like a clock

how do
i want to be perceived?
what do you think when
you see me?

If see her in my face
is it really mine?
Generational trauma
coming from her line.

with every utterance of
“do you still love me?“
i scratch at the scar of
The Mother Wound

you stole my choice twice.
first when you pried it
from my shaking hands.
second when you polluted my brain
to believe every man is like you.

i couldn’t love him even if i wanted to.
all thanks to you.