In the garden of youth where innocence blooms,
A path was forged under unspoken glooms,
A young heart, trembling, lost in the haze,
Sought to follow tradition\'s stern, cold gaze.
Once, where love seemed bound by certain decree,
A question was whispered by a heart yet free:
What if desire\'s truth lay in another course?
What if my soul\'s compass pointed to a different source?
In the shadow of judgment, in a fearful embrace,
I danced with convention, a mask on my face,
With men I lay, as I was taught to believe,
But inside, a different truth began to conceive.
A battle raged, a tempest wild and strong,
Between what felt real and where I thought I belonged,
Each choice, a struggle, a step closer to see,
The honest reflection staring back at me.
A whisper turned to a voice, so loud and clear,
A truth unfolded, embraced without fear,
I\'m a woman who loves, and though the path was awry,
I\'ve found my soul\'s calling, under love\'s open sky.
Now unburdened, unfettered, I stand in the sun,
The journey was arduous, but I\'ve come undone,
From shadows and echoes, from the closet, I\'m free,
In the garden of love, I\'m just who I\'m meant to be.
© Susie Stiles-Wolf