It began to rain
The moment I told myself
How much of a terrible parent I'd be
Because for years I struggled
To parent myself.
I feel completely undeserving
To bask in the sunrays of a baby's smile
Because who am I to trust myself?
What if I self destruct?
Or sink my way into
The dark, crevices of post partum depression?
What if I become the thing I fear?
Anger.
Because growing up I felt its whiplash
And like the smell of cigarettes
It awakens an urge to return to what's familiar?
What if I'm not done healing?
And the scars on my arms, now invisible, begin to show up on my child's heart?
What if I were to cause that harm?
Unintentionally dulling the lights in their eyes?
Turning them void
Because of me being too weak to block
The cascading stones from the world;
My shield breaking under the duress.
What if I loose my mind and break myself?
Who would they call mom and protector?
I wish I could say that none of this will happen
But I love too much
To risk giving them too little.
So I don't pursue that path for now.
In the hopes that someday,
I can pour into them
So that their joy comes from me
And not something that has to be acquired
By them later
Because I hurt them.