Find Your Strength And Free Yourself. {poetry}
{source}
It was only a short time ago that I was in an abusive relationship, homeless in Las Vegas, and trying to battle cancer.
I tried to leave my abuser several times, but he would find me and I would believe his apologies, and it would begin again.
February 10th, 2015 was the day I finally left for good. I was able to call my cousin and get a ride out of town. I stayed with her while I had surgery to remove the sarcoma.
The last time I heard from him was May 17th, 2015 when he sent me a text message saying that he was going to drive by and shoot me.
My way of healing my soul from that time of my life has been to empower others to free themselves. Reminding them that they have the strength within themselves if only they believe. One way I do this is with my writing and artwork.
I am now living in a small town in the desert. My dogs are my anchor. I have reconnected with some of my family. I write, paint, sculpt and craft.
I have started a Facebook page for my art, called Desert Witch Crafts, and will be starting an Etsy shop soon. I am rewriting my story day by day. It may not be a fairy tale, but it will still be a happy story.
I hope my words help others to break free and heal themselves.
If you are in such a situation, know that I was able to get free and so can you. Reach deep within yourself and find that strength that I know you have. Get away from the one or ones causing you pain and learn to live in happiness again.
Though shelters are not the most pleasant place to live, they are a good stepping stone, and provide assistance to help you free yourself, so do not be afraid to use them.
Here are two poems I wrote about that time in my life. The first one, Weeds No Longer, was written while I was living at Shade Tree Shelter in Las Vegas.
I hope they will inspire others to be strong and be free.
***
Weeds No Longer
(a personal thought from a former weed)
What one gardener may consider a weed
another may consider a prized plant!
The saying One person’s trash is another’s treasure
may seem trite to some, but it is so very true.
Remember always that you are beautiful!
Let no one ever treat you as if you were trash or a weed!
We are all of us prized plants in our own gardens!
We are strong, we are beautiful, we are useful, we are resilient,
we are tenacious, most of all, we are precious and valuable! The world would be a lesser place without us!
We deserve to live in peace and love. We do not have to settle for anything or anyone!
We deserve to live!
Love yourself enough to believe this is true.
For if you do, then others will see this and believe it too!
***
A Journey Through Darkness
There was a time when I was young, and the world seemed a bright and splendid place.
All around me seemed fresh and new, each corner presented a new adventure or a smiling face.
Then the Sun faded from my world, and hid his face from me. The darkness spread over the Land, covering everything in dread.
Danger lurked around every bend, and hatred tarnished all that had shone. Laughter left my world and happiness was dead.
I shivered in the shadows, not knowing what to do, as everything I knew and loved was torn away from me.
Battered and forlorn, I wandered aimlessly across the Land. The abyss would have been my end, but for the ball of night black fur nestled in my arms ‘neath a dead thorny tree.
I knew I had to save the coal black eyes looking into mine from the furry head that lay so trustingly ‘neath my hand.
I lay back, closed my eyes, and sent my spirit in search of hope. Far and deep did I send it into the Land.
Finally did I come back to myself with but a glimmer. A remembrance of another me in another time and place.
The Land herself gave me strength, the rain washed away the grey obscuring fog. The Sun uncovered his long hidden face.
But for the love of a strong and loyal heart, I would not have been here to see the Sun rise and take my stand.
We have found another battered soul, eyes of amber, the softest of fur that is the colors of the desert sands.
True, I am not the trusting child that I was, but neither am I the tortured soul that wandered lost in a fog of grey.
I, like the phoenix, have risen from the ashes of my former lives to live, love and fight another day.
Others may not value their worth, but ’tis their love that keeps me going. Together we are strong and there is nothing that we lack.
Never again shall the Sun be hidden from us, for I have discovered who and what I am. I am a Witch and leader of my Pack.
***
Leta Dungan was born and raised in Sacramento, CA. She has always had a love of animals, art and literature. Her pets and books were her source of escape from a life that was far from happy. The abuse she suffered as a child led to relationships that mimicked the life she grew up in. This culminated in her final abusive relationship where survival forced her to find the strength to break free. It was the love of her children, her pets and nature that gave her the strength to free herself and build a new life. She went back to her artwork and writing as a way to find her strength and remember her dreams. It is now her desire to help others find their own strength. Though still struggling to rebuild her life, she shares what she can with others. She has found her path as a pagan and witch, and walks it with pride. She is rebuilding her relationship with her children and reconnecting with family that she lost contact with as a child but who have helped her remember what true family is about. She has also developed an extensive online family who are supportive and loving. You could contact her via Facebook.
***
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