velveteen girl
normality never looked so appealing.
to wake in the morning, and rise!
to make breakfast, to feed the cats,
to dress and walk to work, all so
ordinary! To make grocery lists
and call the dentist, to answer the phone
and eat with chopsticks.
I am still learning the workings
of this ordinary life, of the whole heart
and the mind and willpower that together
raise me like a sail to the wind.
I am still learning the workings
and the rules of ordinary joy.
I still walk in the maze and swim
endlessly in the lake of dreams.
But my outsides are refuges for desire
as well, my outer life no longer pulled
over me to shield the inner from harm.
I am a velveteen girl, loving myself real.
And hands still cradle me, lifting me
towards a sun that shines warm,
water that speaks in its own language,
and all the others who speak mine.