Broken and Whole

my leg will always
have been broken

I cannot heal well enough
to be as I was in the past
before it was broken

I cannot run into a future healing
no matter how strong the bone
how faded the scar

my heart will always
have been broken

there is not enough therapy
for a future where it doesn’t
beat differently

no amount of re-telling
or writing
can undo the break

I must live now
broken

walk and love more tenderly
attend to my healing
not in stubborn denial 
or vain wishing

I must live now
broken

mindful how it came to be so
allowing it to be
accepting the future as it comes

I am broken
and whole

Author’s Note: My poem, “broken and whole” reflects my understanding of healing offered to me by ACA. I can’t undo the harm or dysfunction, but I can find healing live whole.

Kara O