The story of, I suspect, us all

I realized.
Once upon a time.
That I would never fit in.
That I would never be able to carve away enough of my being to find solace in glass slippers, minds or expectations.
All of whom were waiting to shatter under the weight of my step.
I knew.
That I could never live into the visions that bound my mind.
Images of pretty and neat and easily consumable.


So.
I stopped trying to.
I grieved the loss of a life I imagined that I was promised.
And with tears still dancing at the rims, I met the howl in a place deeper than I thought I could go.
I let it tear through the hollow and reveled in the mess that spilled out onto landscape I had never dared to look at before.
Fearful that my gaze might make it real.
Make it mine.
I wrapped my arms around everything and drew it to my breath.
I adorned my crown with antlers and light.
I sang a siren’s song and woke up to the moon.
I lost the map and found the edge.
I rooted to worlds unseen.
I let myself happen.
Unbound.
Undone.
Dense and wild.
Just as I always.
Secretly.
Hoped.
I could.

In darkness and density...
With love and fire~
Jo Anna