My canvas is stained with memories 

Ink seeping from its white sheets like blood

Pooling into puddles of thoughts, feelings, expressions

The red rage that builds up inside me

The charcoal black that hides me

The deep blue sadness that flows through me

The mud brown confusion

The dark gray fear

The rusty manipulation 

The transparent anxiety

All the colors i’ve been painted

Marking my soul, my skin, the floor

Running into rivers that flow for miles

The hues and shades swirling and mixing together

Until my soul has been stripped of all its color

Till i stand a blank canvas

Ready to be transformed into a work of art

But this time i choose the colors

Mix thousands of pigments together

Scratch my brush across my pallet

To paint something beautiful

I may never be able to wash out the stains that once splattered my canvas

But i can color over them

Poppy orange adventure

Sun yellow happiness

Pastel purple calm

Leaf green peace

Soft pink love

Sky blue inspiration

Light gray empathy

Any color it takes to achieve clarity

The brushes soft dyed bristles will stroke again and again

Swirling, sweeping, etching

Till my canvas is empty no more

And the stains have been painted over.