I don’t need to be
any of the people
I’ve framed myself as.

I don’t have relationships
with any of these personas.
I don’t owe them anything —
not loyalty, not justification —
don’t need to be angry or sad
on their account.

I don’t need to keep tabs
on the stories, the slights,
the constant explanations,
don’t need to rehearse
for some imagined future confrontation.

My being has nothing to do with that.
What I’m worth is not subject
to the outcome of any contest.
These dreams leave no trace of memory
when they’re gone —
I can start here
with the practice of who I am.

©Wendy Mulhern
August 2, 2017