Broken

Duct-taped together
beneath a flimsy veneer
hiding my brokenness —
others believed me functional,
able, effective. Little did they know...
Alone I cringed picking up a phone,
drowning in recriminations
after what I sensed as social
faux pas, never daring to claim
any rights, any favors, despite
social standing so significant
as to make others uncomfortable
when I held back. Broken, I was.
My life had become unmanageable;
I was powerless over addiction,
fear, over life. Then the secret emerged.
The fractured life was far from hopeless.
Hope for me, and for my fellows,
sprang from the shards.