#abuse coping

Did you think I would always be eight years old and terrified of you? Watch how I have grown despite your negligence I have expanded through the cracks that you broke into me, I have grown wildly like ivy into every empty part of myself, I have filled the empty spaces with foliage of purpose, Where you have stolen things, I have replaced. And every ounce of it is angry at you. Every piece of me that refused to die when you rooted through my organs is now teeming with the life you tried to smother out, Where you have touched, there is scar tissue armored against you, But it has healed, the fresh wounds have closed over. But you never healed, did you? I never fought back, it was never my claws in your flesh, but someone else damaged you, I see now that you've only ever been missing things, So you tried to take all you could from anyone else and stuff those broken pieces into yourself. It was a weak attempt to right the wrong inside you. So no, I do not fear you anymore, You aren't here but your fingerprints still stain my ribs, There's a ghost of you somewhere in my closet, But I can look the pieces you've left in the eye now, and maybe that's enough.