TRANSPARENCY

I cannot paint for you
daisies and red roses
pruned and perfected
basking in sunshine
thriving in garden.

I must paint for you
these sharp, poignant thorns
these bruised, wilted petals
these wildly tangled vines
these roots in cracked pavement

to remind you of my humanity
cut down but still rising
in the coldness of winter
in the loneliness of the desert
I paint for you
my purposeful existence
my powerful resistance
my beautiful imperfections
my unwavering resilience.
I am Divine
and I thrive because I love
and love because I live.