a little while ago
a group of people
family, friends, almost-strangers
carved a version of me
into stone
and said
"please never change!"
and implied
or we'll never treat you the same
so I have tried to stay
the same to this image
of an old, dead me
too afraid to shed
this old, rotting skin
too afraid to move
from this fixed position
and to try to finally be
myself