Sometimes I Feel

Sometimes I feel like
I could be an amazing woman.
No one sees now the passion inside me
The heart full of more love
      than anyone could imagine
With the fierceness of a mother bear
      for her cubs
The joy of the first flowers opening
      mid-winter heralding the spring
The strength of water that can destroy
      in a raging flood or give life
      with a gentle stream
The wisdom of the wide-eyed owl on
      his darkened perch
The tenderness of a weeping willows
      gentle sweeping caress.
The gods themselves would look down upon me,
Weep for joy at the wonderous being they created.
And if someone, anyone, could make me feel
I was the most important thing in their lives
Then I could move the world and all that in it
      for them.
But there is nothing there to light the fire
No one to feed the flame the love it needs
A few errant sparks come and go
Serving only to remind me
Of the great potential festering inside me
I am left with nothing but
A body bruised and scarred from decades of abuse
A heart ripped and torn from countless misuse
And a soul devoured by its own worthlessness