If I give this my all
and I do not succeed,
maybe it was not meant to be.
Perhaps this is not who I am.
What if who I became is a lie?
Maybe she was who I needed to survive.
I’m peeling back the layers;
sloughing away.
Becoming more myself
day after day.

I’m peeling back the layers
that have built up over years
from becoming the product
of all my fears.
Should I stay?
There’s a turmoil inside.
Which direction do I go?
Which way will I decide?

The answer’s unknown,
but I’m going to go chase
the dreams that I have sown
and find my true place.

Editor: Erynn Crittenden