Skins
byChloe McLeod
I want to live in a city where no one knows my name
Where the only thing familiar to me is the suns path across the sky
And I will follow it in a straight line as there’s nowhere else to go so I might as well go forward
Where every street corner is an unexplored maze of new faces and places
Both of which know and expect nothing of me
Me who will probably be gone in the time
It takes to exhale
I long for everything I am or have ever been to be erased in one swipe
Who I was
Who I am
Choose to define me from any stereotype
It doesn’t matter anymore
It can be the best kind of dress up
Because it’s real
Slip on a new skin
For a day or forever
If it doesn’t fit just right you can always alter it, stich it up or cast it away
Your new skin might move easier
Be more comfortable than what you had before
After all my old skin is just a patchwork
Made of carefully constructed squares from everything that I have done
But I’m curious if I peel them away what’s left underneath
I don’t know what I will find but hide and seek was always my favourite childhood game
And from this I’ve learnt that if you haven’t found what you want you need to start looking in a new place
Unless you’re looking for your lost phone or keys which will you can rely on being found when you’re 10 minutes late regardless of where you look
And in the city I will begin searching in the quite of an empty shop, the conversation with a street corner musician, the bustle of the streets, the colours
in a store window
Without exception we all see each other through tainted eyes
Stained by past experiences
How I’m treated leads to how I act leads to how I see myself
That’s why I need to readjust my compass, and fill in new maps in my head
But I’ll be sure to put a little x in red where I’ve come from so I can always find my way home
I’m off to pack my bags
My baggage
And I’ll be on my way