Her Eyes Took Me By Surprise

As I wiped steam from the bathroom mirror, the reflection of her eyes took me by surprise

Big, brown, familiar, yet not

I stood staring as the air cleared

Slowly the cloak covering the mirror vanished as did the way she once saw herself

I could see the woman in front of me wet and renewed not only from the morning's cleansing

But also from breaking free from the cocoon in which she was once encased


I was mesmerized as watched the droplets of water

Fall from her body taking with them the fear she had before tightly gripped

Wet tresses of blonde, mixed with platinum, framed her face

I paused as I stared and for the first time in ages saw the essence of the one whose reflection I studied

I looked at the outward scars the ink on her arms covered

In them I saw evidence of the battles she had fought and won

Within her I knew the scars left on her heart were being healed

She stood there naked, without makeup, with ringlets of wet hair

And I saw a beauty I had never before seen in her

I saw a radiance that comes with being comfortable in one's own skin

I saw a woman with no need for affirmation, for she had fought the war and survived


xoxo,