The Woman I Am (A birthday tribute to those who helped shape me)

 

I have always been taken

with things that have age

and history –

It is not growing older

that bothers me

it’s the realization

that time is fleeting

time is fickle –

time is ephemeral –

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But I also know  –

time is also precious

and with age comes wisdom

and I know what’s important

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When I was a child

I hid parts of myself

even to my own eyes

I would wrap myself

in a towel

and change my clothes

 under bed sheets

ashamed of my early development

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Now I walk from the shower

to my bedroom

in nothing

but

the lavender oil

that anoints my body

And I’m proud

of the woman I’ve become

Because I am the daughter

of Larry and Peggy

and the granddaughter

of James and Dorothea

and the sister of Jason

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And these people

shaped who I am

their blood is my blood

their particles are my particles

and my heart beats to their rhythm.

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And to hide myself

would be an injustice to them

So I will stand as proud as the lavender

that basks in the sun

and blows in the wind

before becoming the oil

that anoints my body

∗∗∗

And on this day of my birth

I will bask in their light

and feel their breath on my skin

because what’s important

is family

and love

and making the most

of fleeting time

©Kristian L. Weigman