One step forward will cost falling down,
A trauma response freezes me to the ground,
why bother get up when there’s no one around?

Attempts at more steps send me back to the start,
downplaying the end/the abuse/the mental brutality,
Re-read your notes, remember reality.

I sprint forward and demand to heal NOW,
begging to un-do/to forget/to never have met,
Drawn instead into healing, slow down…not yet.

Luciana, 37