Who am I but the sum of my parts?
Who am I when those parts don't add up anymore?
I spent most of my life in pink tights,
With soft fingers wrapped around wooden barres,
With cracked toenails and arched feet stuffed
In satin shoes that little by little broke me apart;
With layers of tulle gathered at my waist
That twirled around my hips and floated above my thighs.
Who am I when I can no longer
Spin on the tips of my toes because
The pain has become too much to bear?
Who am I when I am the sum of joints
That crack and pop when I stand or walk or run?
Who am I when the heartache and the worry consume me,
That my one true love is no longer
Running like water through my every being,
Running alongside the bloodstream through my veins,
Running through the cracks and crevices and arteries of my heart,
And running through my lifeforce?
Is my heart no longer part of the equation?
Or is my heart no longer what it once was?
YOU ARE READING
Musings From True and False Lives
PoetryA collection of poems written and submitted for one of my university English classes.
