Look inside—what do you see?

I see a girl
who was caged,
broken and scared.

I see a girl
who was fed
projections and lies.

I see a girl
who called herself a chameleon
because she could adapt
to any situation—
but in reality
she was hiding,
shrinking into the background
so that she would not be noticed
and picked on
and picked apart
by the vultures,
by the spiteful words
disguised as love.

The wild will not be tamed.

I see a girl
who was caged.
She was told
she was “too wild.”
Too wild
to be seen.
Too wild
for the American Dream.

I see a girl
who has worn
mask after mask
to fit in,
to fit the image.
I see a girl
who has built up
wall after wall
to protect herself.
She believed
her true self was
too wild,
too much,
and simultaneously
not enough.

I see a girl
who was caged,
broken and scared.

Look again—
What do you see?

I see a woman
who saw
a crack of light
through the mask
of darkness.

I see a woman
who let her heart
crack open
to the possibilities.

I see a woman
who found safety
and started to
quietly
secretly
tell her story.

I see a woman
who has taken off
mask after mask,
broken down
wall after wall.

I see a woman
who has met
her true self,
the one
that was there
all along.

I see a woman
who is trusting
her own voice,
her own intuition,
her own guidance,
her own path.

I see a woman
who has broken the cage.
She runs free and wild.

The wild will not be tamed.

~

Relephant:

She is Wild Woman. {Poem}

This is for the Sensitive Souls: a Poem for Women.

~

Author: Mona Luan
Image: Unsplash/Mohamed Nohassi
Editor: Yoli Ramazzina
Copy Editor: Jen Schwartz