A TWIN INSIDE 

I have a twin.

It hides inside 

the medicine bag

of my body, 

as a fake seed

a false self,

a ghost child, 

an empty echo,

a mockery 

of the very thing 

it mimics.

It carries no cargo 

of its own

and yet pretends 

to be seaworthy.

It is a stowaway

that rides for free

and is an excess 

that occupies 

but adds nothing.

I have always made

more of things

than I should 

from the lack 

I have felt within.

Have I done this again

with this twin –

by grafting 

the appearance

of yang on to yang,

by doubling up 

my dominance

on one side

more than the other? 

Oh twin, you are a presence 

that walks with me

but blocks my every move.

You are a pain I can

no longer carry.

You must go.

You don’t belong here.

It is time to release you.

I must clear the way

for something new 

to grow,

to blossom.

My body is ready to take 

its balance back.

It wants nothing to do with

imposters or intruders 

anymore. Flow is what 

it’s meant to know. 

Fluidity is the new power

that will run through me

like the River Jordan 

runs to the Sea of Galilee.