Do butterflies recall caterpillar days:
Green bloated bodies
chewing leaves into lace,
spinning themselves into shrouds
of blessed invisibility?

Do swans relive ugly-duckling beginnings,
avoiding their own reflections
in barnyard mirrors,
forced into shame by the jeers
of the cuter species?

Frozen by familial terms of
cruel endearment,
a cowardly bookworm
devouring fantasy stories of
impossible beauty and romance,
chewing myself into invisibility —

I remember.

Persephone stirs from purple shadows
discovers a lode of rare quartz
and cleans the clay
clinging to smooth facets.

On the cobbled shingle of a deserted beach
she finds herself breathing salt
under streaming strands
of seaweed and chestnut hair.

Haunting cries call
crystal eyes skyward.
As swans soar by,
she begins to dance.

– Julie T.

JOURNAL PROMPT: Do you have a piece of poetry living within you that needs to come out into the light of day to celebrate your recovery in OA?

Please send your blog submissions to blog@oasv.org. We look forward to hearing from you and to sharing your story of experience, strength and hope with others on this amazing journey of OA recovery from compulsive eating through the Twelve Steps.