Dear Atopic Eczema,

As you take away barriers of my skin
I have built up walls around my heart
Before I knew that I was Pangea,
You break me into continents

Like colonizers, you spread an itch to all parts of my skin unfairly
Turning some skin into wrinkles that match grandmother's
While others become drenched in the lack of love

My nails have become law that separates
Raising areas into tiny mountains
Or deep faults that mark my skin
Causing pink swells to become random puddles across my body

You have caused me shame and confusion
No mirror could tell me what I was or used to be
With my skin constantly swelling and scarring
Into tans, pinks, whites, and browns

Always wanted to hide
Always made me wonder what
I was supposed to be
What I could be...

On days when I shed white flags
You wage war and blood
Swelling with a pinkish rage
Leaving patches of cracked soil
As well as valleys of blood

I remember crying in the shower
Because even you have made water
The source of life
Feel like juices of lemon
Drenching skin filled with wounds of war

Only on days where I have triumph other challenges
Do I thank you for my Enlightenment

Only days when my loved ones still
Hug me,
Kiss me,
Or hold my hand
Do I owe my gratitude to you

On days like these I can hope to become Pangea once more

Although you leave my body a lifeless desert
You have blessed upon me a heart of gardens

Yours respectfully,
C.S. Caingcoy