Textured Swirl series

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hurricane
 
My own power, howling and swirling at my feet,
pulls me right up to the edge,
pushing me to let go,
to jump and see where I land.
 
I try to tamp down
the overwhelming winds of my father’s violence
that I fear still lurks in my mind.
Does nothing divide me and him?
Can I hide from this hurricane?
 
I must control all of my emotions
or do as he did
An action that keeps me from
everything that makes me magical.
 
No longer am I able to hide from that storm
cowering in the dark, frightened,
while I wait for it to pass and leave me alone.
 
Though it rises, promising to carry me away,
I turn and look at the wild wind and realize
that I can’t run far or fast enough
to get away from myself.
 
I am not that scarred and scared young girl
I am as powerful as a lightning storm
and as soft as a breeze.
I can bring my open heart like a soft rain
Or crash down like a summer downpour.
 
Turning to face the hurricane.
not hiding or running from the gusting wind
I face the pounding in my chest
pressing myself to push past my own fear
to create the windswept power
of my own life.
 
Opening to all that I am
Strong and soft, intense and gentle,
passionately crafting my own life,
because there is no escaping this fact:
I am the hurricane.