THE LINE

Inch long

and only

centimeters

deep, and yet

it is

the deepest

line I know,

deeper than

any canyon

I have traversed

and longer than

any Himalayan trail

I’ve thought to travel—because

it is written on my body

like a threshold

that only I could cross.

And yet, in the making

of this one thin line

a greater line

got written, drawn

by kindness, generosity,

and love: a circle

made by many

that held and kept me

safe before, during and after

the surgeon turned 

my flesh and my life into 

poetry once again.