Scar Tape

Sometimes I feel like

Being alive is video game, and I’m playing on

Hard mode, no cheats.

If gender dysphoria

Had a final boss

It would be looking at pictures of yourself

As a kid.

If my body dysmorphia

Was fully externalized

I’d be a boxer and the timer

Wouldn’t be running. The crowd

Still wouldn’t let me leave, and the opponents

Keep coming. Like MMA meets Tetris,

Or something.

When I had top surgery I wanted to ask

My surgeon how many rings there were

Underneath but I knew she would answer me

Matter of fact, alas

I am a tree thicker than most, and old oak scarred up

You can count my age as well as my

Life events, I try to find the silver lining

Not because I’m an optimist

But because I need a fresh layer of gauze

At least, since transitioning

I discovered scar tape, which really seems

To be taking the edge off.