Glass Magpies – A Poem

I gather letters to myself like a magpie.

They are shiny and sparkling and I need to hold light right now.  

As I gather them up,

the light draws me inward so that I can look at myself,

and I can really see myself and who I am

without wondering what layer

to make people comfortable.

These pieces of glass hold onto the light,

making them pulse and shine.

The letters are written in different handwriting,

slashes of F’s, A’s and G’s like bullets written on glass,

each slice of the letter like a scar on the surface burnt black;

To counteract the hatred,

I can also see the soft curls of Q’s, U’s, E’s and R’s

that are written in chalk along the rough surfaces of dark red bricks,

in bright lines like feathers in a rainbow of colours,

ready to break down walls and barriers.

These letters hold a story within them,

of whom I’ve always been;

it just took me a while to see myself properly in the glass.

I walk further along the path,

collecting more pieces of glass along the way.

There is a drumbeat in the air and with each step,

a sense of promise grows in me,

which only increases when I find myself in a clearing.

In front of me,

there is a stone with an outline of me,

and I wonder if it was made by the same hand that made the letters.

Approaching the glass,

I begin to place the shards with the outline,

knowing that when I have filled the whole silhouette with glass,

I will finally be able to see myself

as I truly am.