Anorexia

Sometimes the voice inside your head can lead you astray and give you a distorted vision of reality. Hence this poem called Anorexia.

I look into the mirror

And what do I see

Acres of flesh

That belong to me

I put on a dress

And what do I feel

Filled with shame

At my ghastly frame

I go to the cupboard

To fill up my plate

And what do I eat

One pea and a grape

I look at other people

And what do I see

Perfect figures

And clothes that don’t fit me

I don’t get weighed

As I know I am fat

Mirrors don’t lie

So on that I rely

My flesh it is sore

And I feel every bone

When I lie or I sit

But nothing’s amiss

My parents they tell me

I need to eat more

But what do they know

They don’t see what I see

I walk very slow

But I’ve not far to go

Just ten steps from the house

To the ambulance’s open door

I collapse on the bed

I can’t lift my head

They want me to eat

That would be a defeat

I look at the doctor

He looks at me

He shakes his head

And what does he see

He sees a body

All skin and bone

It makes him so sad

He gives a silent groan

But what do I care

I’ve won my victory

I’ve reached size zero

It’s a child’s coffin for me