Without (Day 36 of 100 -- Poetry Challenge)

I was not wanted.
A child knows this
despite any attempt at thinly-worn smiles
and second-hand treatment.

The last to eat plots
while the others fatten up
on comfort and false security
those pushed aside find crevasses to stay
out of harm's way
We peer in from cracks
and lie in wait.

I always watched just out of view
like a wolf from the edge of the wood
I stayed true to the those that were kind.

I found love in strange places
shadowed love
the kind only the exiled know
the pact

I grew strong in the wilds of my inner-world

and I will never forget the faces of those
that wished me away
that thought me
an obstacle to their desires
an impasse to their goals
a snot-nosed brat.

They are now old
dying or
dead
and the child they pushed away?
Well
she’s still that dirty
little secret
and she still watches
from the dark edges
beyond the firelight
of this modern world
of the world of memories.

• All pieces are newly crafted and posted shortly after in adherence to the rules of the challenge. All the photos are mine unless otherwise stated.

• First photo: She-Wolf Suckling Romulus and Remus, detail, by Ludovico Carracci or Annibale Carracci, 16th century,
  and is public domain.

• Second photo: Romulus, Remus and their Nursemaid, c.1805 by Jacques-Laurent Agasse, and is public domain.

• Entry for Day 36 of 100 Days of Poetry Challenge by @d-pend.

• Join the Steemit School here: https://discord.gg/yZvYjfM organized by @dobartim on Discord.