Sober Poetry

By Elizabeth Gade

Elizabeth Gade is a US based bisexual writer, certified peer support worker and yoga teacher in training. As a human trafficking survivor, her lived experience of abuse and incarceration drives her to write and serve her community. She views writing as a radical way to show up in the world while connecting to fellow survivors. Her poems have been published or are forthcoming in The View Magazine, The Elevation Review, 300 Days Of Sun, Other Worldly Women Press, The GroundUp, The Lindenwood Review & Nine Cloud Journal.

Alcohol Free

Every day I drank

to drown a story of shame

now I write every day

to share an authentic

message of hope

of survival

I made it

and so can you

I believe in you

and those shaking

tentative steps

into the unknown

even when the fear

threatens to pull you under

with clarity comes connections

and I’ll wait for you, my dear friend

for as long as it takes

until we are both

standing in the sunlight

Body Of Mine

This poem is for my body

what anchors me to this earth

keeps me grounded in this world

my most hated possession

what holds all my hate and resentment

stores all the trauma

works even when I’m tired

and I haven’t told it

thank you

or

I love you

in a very long time

maybe it’s been forever

since I allowed my body

rest and appreciation

this beautifully wretched

body of mine

prone to decay

and destruction

how many days

borrowed against time

how many favors owed

and still it persists

this body of mine

even as it’s undervalued

and overused

viewed as mundane

this poem is for my body

a recognition

olive branch finally extending

I see you body

and it’s an

honor

to call you mine

I invite you

body to come

and sit

still with me

to be

with me

body of mine

the meeting of self