Dragon Scale Stars – A Poem

I need to solve the puzzle of myself.

When I look into the mirror,

I wonder who placed the pieces

of the puzzle that I can see.

My face looks as if it’s made

from a patchwork quilt.

Some of the puzzle pieces are peeling away,

dry with age and time,

the colours faded and pale.

I pry a piece that covers my left eye

away from my face,

gently pulling the carboard from my skin.

It comes away with a soft popping sound,

leaving the skin around my eye red and irritated.

I stare into my eyes in my reflection

and I wonder if it’s the first time

I am really seeing myself.

Carefully, I peel away more pieces of the puzzle,

casting each one to the floor,

where they gather like dragon scales.

I wonder if I am becoming

who I was always meant to be,

or seeing who I always was

without the ideals of other people.

I let the last piece of the puzzle fall away.

Seeing myself as I am for the first time,

I wonder whether the puzzle pieces

were a way of protecting myself

or a way to be seen as others wanted me to be.

I gather the dragon scales into my hands

and wrap my arms around them

as if they were a child.

I stand in front of the mirror and look inward

while seeing myself on the surface.

Looking out at a distant landscape,

I realize that I’m standing on the edge of a cliff.

The wind brushes against my face,

inviting me to let go and let myself fly.

I take each scale, each piece of the puzzle,

and give them to the landscape within.

The wind takes the scales

and I make a wish on each one of them.

As they float away from me,

they look like stars

being carried home.