At Home in My Skin
I entered this blooming
amidst a mind field
of fuzzy flat gray.
In my gut, angst said
I didn't fit or belong anywhere.
I lived alone in that forest
On the brightest days,
darkness deepened there,
water dripped from leaves
to the ground in my core.
Seeds stirred
in my dark heart.
I felt a garden growing
inside, growing denser
and taller as I aged.
I navigated
the verdant jungle of my thoughts
for 61 springs.
From the tracery of trails
between trees and the
topographic music
of chittering, skittering creatures,
I emerged, knowing who I am,
who I've always been.
Nothing from my raveled backstory
compares with my kaleidoscopic
community or the vivid 3D feel
of how fucking fabulous
it is to be me.
Emily Moon (she/her) is a transgender poet from Portland, Ore. She is Editor at First Matter Press. Her book, It’s Just You & Me, Miss Moon, was published by First Matter Press prior to her taking on an editorial role. Her work includes appearances in or forthcoming from Pile Press, En*gendered Literary, Ethel Zine, Variant Literature, Full House Literary, Celestite Poetry Journal, Wild Roof Journal, Banyan Review, and elsewhere. You can find her on Instagram @Em.Z.mE and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Emily.Moon.57/