fading through the years

she's five

though she falls, she thrives

her mother says her scars will heal

her falls are no big deal

she's thirteen

her mother tells her she's a beauty queen

the mirror says she's hideous

she's convinced her mother's delirious

she's fifteen

her mother's convinced she's become too lean

grabs excess skin with her fingers

media images acting as triggers

she's seventeen

the cuts on her wrist remain unseen

she uses a blade as a method of escaping

her mother sees her daughter fading

i am almost twenty

though i fall, i do not thrive

my mother said my scars will heal

but they're still there - it's become a grand deal