Inside Out

It’s a blurry line really,
A delicate balancing act: 
Holding you, holding me. 

I’ve ignored you
And denied you.
Pretended you were someone else. 

I had made it on my own.
A miraculous escape
From the abyss of memory. 

But I was hollow,
A shell of a person.
Just an outside holding space 

While you screamed to echoes. 
You got my attention: 
Migraines,
Panic attacks, 
Nauseating anxiety. 

Oh, hello in there!

Have you been there the whole time?! 

I see you now. 
Feel all the unfelt: 
Pain,
Horror, 
Loneliness. 

“Welcome to her body,” 
Guided the tears.
Past meets present.
She gave an invitation to grieve. 

This is what healing looks like: 
It’s balancing you from the past 
Inside me in the present. 
Because I am you,
And you are me. 

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Maggie Hemphill is a trauma-informed life coach and story group facilitator at Storied Life Coaching, where she meets people in the depths of their stories and guides them to living a more integrated life of meaning and purpose. She is the co-host of the Arise Podcast having conversations around faith, race, justice, gender and healing that seek to tell a truer narrative of our collective stories. Maggie supports and empowers other women as brand affiliate with Trades of Hope, supporting women out of poverty and human trafficking through education and employment making fair trade jewelry and ethical fashion. Maggie lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and three hilarious kids and is in constant awe of God’s glory and goodness.