Metamorphosis

I have lived many lives-

Told many lies,

Worn a thousand faces,

But my eyes stayed the same.

Each version of me,

Peeled layers off my spine,

One by one, leaving empty spaces

For scar tissue to cover.

I’ve shed skins in broad daylight,

In places that I shouldn't have,

But always, beneath it all,

There was that same, curious child.

I look at them- those past lives-

The girl who wept,

The one who fought,

The one who ran,

And the one who stayed too long.

We stand in a circle now,

Hand in hand,

Reminding each other of the scars

That never truly fade.

I have been them all,

And they have been me-

A chain of selves linked by breath,

By hope, by the quiet tremble of fear.

I do not forget them,

Nor do I mourn them.

I simply carry them with me,

The weight and the lightness of it all.

I have lived many lives-

Told many lies,

Worn a thousand faces,

Left a thousand places.

What's another mask,

After this?