THE BATTLE (WHEN HEALING)

The battle

is keeping peace and tranquility

at the center of your being.

what we do

is center ourselves,

around ourselves

first.

this will rub others the wrong way,

even the ones we love most.

to the point that there are

no more fishes in the sea,

know that you will come off as selfish.

when you are simply wrapped

in the love of yourself.

You see,

when you begin on the path of self-love,

you dig into yourself

find the trash you forgot to take out years ago,

discover rotten teeth from the fallen facade in your smile,

encounter glass from broken treasures and past lovers.

Then,

frightened by your discoveries,

you will isolate yourself.

hide your demons in a box

with the sturdiest lid you can find in all of this shattered city.

but you will never find one compact enough

to keep you from seeing yourself

through the cardboard.

Then,

your journey will slap even your loved ones.

they will attempt

to embark onto your land of solitude

with an embargo.

place sanctions as ultimatums,

like you don't know what best for you

Then,

they will turn you into the forbidden

have you wail in your lonely hunger,

a belly that only self- love can feed.

you will begin to accept your nakedness

as God-like.

as God made it.

imperfect,

scared, spotted and freckled.

marks of a warrior

that has finally met themselves,

and in the end

won the war.

At last,

in the glory of healing,

you begin to see God reflecting

in your eyes.