something my mother told me – Linda M. Crate

the girl in the reflection
is prettier than i am
without all
the fractured bones of moments that
cling and tug until the whole
body is tired

she doesn’t have the anxiety
teeth gnawing at her
she is a breath of fresh air
a flower that grows
until you think you cannot die
because she is immortal
in all her eyes,

and i try to smile like she does
but i can’t quite get it right;
she is a goddess
i am an alien in these bones
trying to scrape together a belief that
even ugly things can bring about beauty
it’s something my mother told me once.

 

 

Image: Kari Shea