Below is Ethar’s poem “Almost”, and her artwork of what helps her make it through the day.

“I will go down to the lake

And dip my toes in the blue-green water,

Tadpoles tickling my feet.

It would be a cliché scene

If it weren’t for my bottle of morning Prozac

Sitting beside me,

On the grass.  

It will be a good morning,

The sun rising above me

Like a citrus fruit that smolders a rusty scarlet.

I will lie down on my back

And let a ladybug crawl over my chest.

No one will stare at me

Until maybe I start muttering

To the voices talking to me

To leave me alone.

I will not look different—

I will not be different

Unless I lie there, frozen,

Too weighed down

To even shoo away the birds

That gather

On my head.”

Ethar’s blog, containing more of her thoughts, work, and art, much of which is focused on mental health, can be found here.

Remember-you are not broken, and you are loved.

-DK

Want to submit to this site and share your story, art, or article related to mental health or mental illness? Email wemustbebroken@gmail.com