What am i /but the lines in the palms of my hands - perhaps hints to
the pathways of my life

What am i / but the moles and freckles making up my outer layer / stars and constellations /
I, a universe in my own right 

What am i / but the lines cutting deeper into my skin each year / like the annual rings of a tree / I too am a many layered thing / evidence of my time showing itself through crevices forming in my glabellar area / all that time spent, pensive / you can read me like the core of the tree if you’re paying attention 

What am I / but the scar near my elbow that still feels textured and bumpy / the memory of falling on my bike carved onto my skin forever 

What am I / but the background hum of all the noise between my ears / the world between my ears / all the intricacies in the makeup of my hemispheres / 

What am I / but the culmination / the chemistry combined / of all the other universes I’ve known and touched / all the palms I’ve graced / all the uncanny resemblances of Helix-nebulas I’ve stared into with my own / trying to know / see into their system 

What am I / but the twice made scar in my abdomen / two universes brought to life / by love and chemistry / and everything that is all at once
scientific and magical 

What am I / but the history of my sisters / the blood sweat and tears of journeys before me / the ceiling breaks and the prayer for sunbeams from lives who 
wanted more for those who come after them 

What am I / but an evolution of time 
And life 
And love 
And a universe 
In my own right

-Rachel Burger