I Saw This

I saw this meme and it stopped me in my tracks

I know where it’s coming from, who it’s aimed toward

And I agree

For my daughter and all the other daughters of this world

This makes sense and is exactly what I want to protect her from

But you see, I

I never could see myself

Truly

For who I am

And this meme, this sentence, doesn’t mean that to me because

That someone who told me was me

And still is

Not all the time

Not even a lot of the time

Anymore

But the whisper is still there

In the wind

Slipping through the cracks in my armor

In the mirror

Peaking out behind shadows and shapes

In the memory

Like a dream left haunting and lingering

In the media and the culture wars and the workplace politics and the intricacies of relationships

It’s there

The doubt

The insecurity

The fear

Of less than

Being less than

Being more of

Being not yet

Being too much

So you see, when you open your eyes and really look at yourself

Sometimes the enemy is staring right back at you.