Angie Wahlig

Choosing Me

he knew me, yet, he chose me for his young bride. i desperately wanted to please him and meet his expectations until i realized that what he expected was someone else–not the woman i am. i am not so different from him with my own ideas and high ambitions. i share his work ethic, his intellect, his intention to succeed...his passion. i never envisioned myself confined to the darkness of his shadow engulfed in a power struggle over my refusal to fold myself into him– wholly abandoning any hint of my identity. it wasn't enough that i adored; even exalted him. he chose my body to hold a veiled persona of the wife he imagined–one who deferred to her husband's wishes in every aspect of life. i dumbed myself down to fulfill his hunger for superiority until, finally...i chose me.

dried rose petals
among scattered rice
her veil lifted