POEM - Little Scars

Up close
The skin is topographical
With normal variations
From open plains
To varying densities
Of variegated grasslands
Atop glorious varieties
Of differing shades
On the surface layer

It is the unexpected
That holds a deeper story
The flaws in an unbroken plane
Divots or ridges
That blend in at first
Until they are finally seen
And then can't be unseen

Take this ridge I now own
Just above my wedding ring
From when I was just a little careless
Made just a small slip
With very sharp scissors
That bit unforgivingly
A tiny mouthful of flesh
Before work one Sunday evening
Many years ago
And the pain left long ago too
But there is still the ridge
A soft little smearing
Of the shaft of my finger
A cautionary feature
Left in plain site

And there are others
Scattered across my body
Some with stories complete
Others of mysterious origin
Each unique to me

Like the quarter size circle
Just below my left knee
My old four-square injury
From back in sixth grade
That I earned one recess
As I chased the game ball
Then lost my footing
On the gravel over the asphalt
The tiny pebbles lodging
Deep in the skin
So deep our nurse friend
Had to use a waterpick
To clean them out
As I grimaced in anguish
I have grown since then
And the scar has moved
From its perch on my kneecap
Further down my leg
Always fascinating me
The crater-like remnant
Of a momentary action
Persisting through the years

These are the merit badges
That we give ourselves
Tokens of pain endured
Challenges faced
Struggles overcome
A notice to all
That here marks the spot
Of another time
Where I didn't give up