Trauma Ties – Written Monday 28th June 2025 (Aged 50)

Trauma Ties

When I was younger,
somewhere back there —
teens, twenties, thirties —
I did not understand
the component bits,
the need for hits,
not understanding
why everything
became a must.

The clue
is being realistic
about happiness,
not hoping
that it will always
be clothed
in some kind of finery,
understanding
that it’s not actually binary,
that its ground
is sometimes challenging,
even when it feels firm.

That happiness
is opaque
and not always
for the long term,
and that wanting
the emotional highs
is not happiness,
it’s what’s broken
behind the eyes.

The trauma ties,
the trauma ties,
the trauma ties —
untie them,
let go,
learn to look
at yourself
and understand
the script
for your own
unique show.

James Garratt – May 2025

More poems at
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https://theboybehindtheglasses.com/2020/01/08/the-boy-behind-the-glasses-an-introduction/

More poems from 2025
https://theboybehindtheglasses.com/category/poems-and-writing-2025/