They plucked my crane feathers
They stole my seal skin
They clipped my angel’s wings
And burned my mermaid’s tail
Forced me to sit in a cubicle
Wear pencil skirts
With my hands folded on my lap
And mask my rage with a smile.
To still my dancing feet,
to silence my sirens song
the baby in my lap
chains me in place.
Pin up your wildling hair
Cover your bare feet
Wear a suit, they tell me:
Shackle me with handbags, schedules, and high heel shoes.
Until I can no longer hear
The song of the sea
The voice of the trees
The whisper of sacred fire
Stripped of my weirdness
Reshaped into their box
Of perfection and normalcy
And still they say I am not good enough
When did you lose your enchantment?
When did you cut out your tongue?
And bind your feet?
And stop telling stories to your children?
When did your boldness become conformity?
When did love become a cage?
Who decided that all your stories
Had already been told?
Voiceless,
Dreamless,
Hopeless,
Alone.
Until a butterfly lands on your nose,
A whale swims in the sky
A dragon appears sleeping in the flowers
And your child sings the ocean’s song
Your dry lips quiver with notes
Your scarred feet tap
Your weary fingers itch to hold
Your hair’s tight coils sway loose
A dance,
A story,
a spell,
a song:
Art explodes out of you
A whisper then a roaring shout
Your hair loose and wild as a storm
Your voice no longer silenced
Until they are the ones forced to listen
And take off their shoes
Strip their constraining ties and stockings
And let their hair grow
Reveal their own voices:
The tears and regrets
The silence and the shame
And the dreams that were taken
Now find your Selkie skin,
Your Angel’s wings,
Your cloak of magic feathers,
Your mermaid’s tail
Create a new one
From paint,
From yarn,
From words
Your weapons and your tools:
Needle,
brush
and pen
Your loyal comrades and friends:
Who’ve never left your side
Merely waited for your sacred voice
To return
Lauren Reynolds spends her days exploring old woods and spinning outrageous tales of faeries, pirates and evil queens and has published many poems and short stories. She lives in Maryland with her best friend and a Hellhound whom is in a long standing hostage negotiation for control of her lap due to a jealous rivalry with her laptop. She is a self-proclaimed mythology nut, anime junky and monster lover.
Image: "Dissolving Into Foam" by Edmund Dulac
Lauren, this is beautiful. I love how you've woven together all the fairy brides who lost their wildness and their freedom.