“what’s past is prologue” by Giovanni Thompson

who would’ve thought
these bandages etched
across his skin
from wounds of his past
would be his shield
and transform him
into a beautiful cocoon
that soulfully wraps him
in preparation for
the monarch butterfly
he is yet to become
he once found refuge
in the destroyed places
where tornados ran wild,
learning to live
within the calm before the storm,
ready to embrace
all that’s destined
to follow in his trajectory

though it took some time
for him to be
the breathing source
of his own love,
because his insecurities
endlessly weigh him down,
he began refining
those cracked pieces
written across his heart

and soon enough,
he became able
to be okay with knowing
he is all that he was
and all that he’s bound to be