the mermaid's voice returns in this one

nobody
has
the right
to lure
your voice
out of
you—
not
even if
they’re
a sea witch
looking
to make
a bargain.
- rip this page out & keep it with you

you did all you could do.
now you must learn
what it means
for you to
live.
- tweet from august 8th, 2017.

little alice may have done a freefall through all of time & space, but that doesn’t mean you have to jump off the bridge after her. sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself is to let the past remain in the past. darling, shhh—it was never as pretty as you like to pretend it was. it’s time you give your present a fair chance. after all, it’s never once given up on you.
- don’t touch the stones.

you have been known
to get cut by
your own hand
& others’.
you have been known
to pry the scabs open,
bleed them
out.
you have been known
to rub them in
with dirt &
grime.
yesterday,
they were
angry scarlet
gashes.
today,
they are
quietly fading
hairlines.
tomorrow,
tomorrow—
- you’ll just have to wait around & see.

on one of my palms, my lifeline stops short. on the other palm, my lifeline dips precariously into my marked-up wrist. i’m not sure which one of them is telling the truth, & part of me never wants to know. the only thing i can do is learn to live with the idea that i will never be cured. i will always be in the process of healing.
- making the most of it.

i don’t write
what i write
to hurt you.
- i write what i write
to heal me.

becoming
your
own
savior
sometimes
means
knowing
when
you
need to
ask for
help.

- therapy session no. 1.