cleavage

what makes a woman?
is it her eyes nose mouth hair
(movie stars care about
what's real, don't (aren't) they?)
or is it her uterus, ovaries, breasts?

when there are two lines where your breasts
should be
and a scar on your stomach where
they took your uterus (and an ovary too, for good measure),
are you still a woman?

what if you lose all your hair and
they had to take out both ovaries, too, but neither
is working
or stopping
it?

cancer leaves a bad taste in one's mouth.

is a woman a presence:
a mother, sister, daughter, friend
or is she something you cry over
someone rubbing your back and murmuring
it'll be okay (noitwon'tnoitwon'tnoitwon't).

does being scared that you're
no longer a woman
make you one?

or is it being courageous,
buying bathing suits with
prosthetic
cups, and giving tight hugs that reveal just how
bony (flat)
you are?

"I am a woman, and these are where my breasts used to be."
--20 april 2008