This is All I Have Left to Say

You are not my story

But merely a chapter

One I will never forget

But one I will never reread

The bruises you left will no longer

Remind me of my shortcomings

But will instead be battle scares

Reminding me of my strength

You caused me to starve

You caused me to self-loathe

You caused me to isolate myself

But your control is not permanent

I will erase the pain you left

I will discard the memories

Of discomfort, fear, and embarassment

And replace them with a fire

I am not your victim

Or defined by your abuse

I am a survivor

I am a fighter

For so long I blamed myself

Told myself that I deserved the pain

That I did this to myself

And I carried that guilt with me

But not anymore

I'm through with wrongfully assigning

The blame to myself when

It's nobody's fault except yours

Your time is up

From your violations

I have gained self-respect and fortitude

And you have gained a guilt conscience

This is all I have left to say to you

My final testimony, my triumph

I will no longer let you have power over me

This is goodbye.