Pull at my sleeve

Pull at my sleeve

Tug at my heart

Demand my attention

If you must

I can empathise

With your dis-ease

My intransigence

Is not implacable

Serving me well

Through the height

Of the storm

Holding my focus

Even as I waiver

The full fury

Of anger

At the world

Assuaged only

By my love

You don’t know me

Not the beat of my heart

The tremor in my voice

When I think of her

The fear of letting go

The discipline

Of survival

The nearness of disaster

Nothing really matters

Success is not measured

In the opinion of others

But in the opinion

I have of myself

The impression

I leave

Is moulded

By your perception

You don’t know me

Just what I show you

Knowing my worth

Did not come easily

Proving myself wrong

Time after time

Along the way

To understanding

That against all odds

I am not alone

And I am a survivor.