Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Proven

International District, Seattle WA
Photo © 2013 Jennifer Wagner



Afterward
she felt just like
the used condom,
            discarded
amidst the cigarette butts
and partially eaten food.

The refuse
stacked up,
lining the side streets
and back streets
of the insides of her,
piling up
on her chalk outline.

Wasn’t she
what had been done to her?

But the point of no return
to what               
she thought of herself
was the road less traveled,
            a cross in the path—
and the journey upward,
a process
littered
with the things
she has chosen to leave behind;

and that has made all the difference.



© 2013 Jennifer Wagner


A little bit of a spin off Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken.


30 comments:

Mary said...

It is very sad if a person thinks that who they are is what has been done to them.....but I am glad to read that the person in this poem instead takes the road less taken and rises up to overcome rather than to succumb!

Laura said...

Beautiful… yes it is possible to turn a life around, indeed it is. We all find our own way, and it is so, so possible.

Claudia said...

love that she didn't let herself being defined by the things that happened and that she found the path to healing... so encouraging...

brudberg said...

Oh this is awesome.. the stark images contrasted with the Frost references... this is a poem I wished I could write..

Buddah Moskowitz said...

Wow! Kick ass good! I love the honest uplift at the end. Big hugs and kiss for you!

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous work, the self-discovery, the journey upward. So well conveyed here.

Daij said...

Snapping my fingers. Loving this.

ND Mitchell said...

A bleak portrait at first, but I really like the way things turn around in the last section. Glad she didn't give up,

Brian Miller said...

no, she is not...and that choice she made is a powerful one, to leave and find a new trail to follow and be master of her own destiny....strong piece...

revelations said...

great piece... a turn around with a clean slate is always possible...

Anonymous said...

It's painful to read at first, but the end turns you around, and that is good poetry.

Alex Dissing said...

That first stanza is one for the ages. This is a great poem that reminds us not to give up.

author.nara.malone said...

Stark images, but beautiful in that she does find the strength to come back form those dark alleys.

ayala said...

Great and strong piece.

gila_mon said...

I love this spin-off. Way to take the bucolic and drop it in the grit. Multidimensional.

Sarav said...

Wow Jennifer, what a punch of a beginning! Stark powerful images, and then to bring us back to what makes the difference-- well done :-)

Unknown said...

Loved this - true survival story.

Namrata said...

It's hardest to break the mould of who you are is what they did to you..but the nonetheless the best is that she choose to take the path less travelled, with unseen risks and hidden traps..the courage she holds in her breath is what makes her a beautiful person. Just like Robert Frost, you are no less than marvelous. :)

Unknown said...

Poignant piece, well observed - thank you.

Anonymous said...

Gritty yet ultimately hopeful, with clever echoes of the original.

Anonymous said...

slap, then a hand up. beautiful, Jennifer ~

Wendy Bourke said...

A soulful, haunting message of hope and strength.

Anonymous said...

This is an encouraging message/choice following a crude, painful opening. It feels honest and is really well written.

Rajesh said...

Disturbing. The desolate alley sums it all

Pealogic said...

This does give hope. It is a verse of great imagery.

J Cosmo Newbery said...

I'm with Wedy: haunting.

Lisa A. Williams said...

Lovely reminder that anyone can turn their life around. Beautiful poem of strength and the will to survive.

janetld said...

Another good one.
I'm glad she chose to leave some things behind.
This wording is particularly poignant to me:
piling up
on her chalk outline.

Rick Watson said...

I just popped over from Keith's Optimistic Existentialist blog.
Love the photo and what poems I've read..
Rick, your latest follower.

Ella said...

Wow, this is powerful and driven to remind us we are not the outline of our existence! It has a haunting quality-which I love!
Well done!
I hope you n' yours had a lovely holiday~