I break open the day
and find myself innocent
though many records
have intimated otherwise

My current self
has not been kind
to my former self
in terms of estimation of her worth

But there are signs amid the boxes
that grace was also present,
there was lovability
and she was loved

It’s right to learn things,
it’s right to grow and to outgrow
and with that progress,
forgiveness also has its place,
it’s right to leave some things behind
but still remember
in a fundamental sense
I’ve never changed.

©Wendy Mulhern
May 16, 2017