#HealedScars
constellations of scars
populate my body,
whispering stories of
the Times Before.
××
i had chickenpox
as a young child.
a right of passage;
a strengthening of the immune system.

unfortunately,
my body has a bad habit
of going above and beyond.

this viral infection
consumed me inside and out.
ignoring all polite social etiquette,
it slid down my throat
once my outer skin was claimed,
covering my insides
with the cursed pox.

i was hospitalised.
i had to be fed through an IV
after my digestive system
became infected with and inflamed by
the rash.
i recently discovered this process
is called parenteral nutrition;
this term seems far too soft and tame
for its reality.

lone, pale pockmarks
remain scattered throughout my skin.

beyond chickenpox,
my young child body
faced many a stay in the hospital
due to errors in my coding.

spinal taps,
EEGs,
ECGs,
endless blood tests,
emergency ambulance trips -
hell, we even had the
top neurologist of our capital city's
personal phone number
for when i dropped
with another sudden seizure.

all before the age of 5.

these pockmarks -
these bright, shining beacons -
remind me of what my body can endure.
××
they're faded now,...