For Survivors of Hysterectomy (A Poem)

We have survived the knife
That severed our wombs
From our reluctant bodies.

We have survived mornings of pain,
Afternoons when it was hard to stay awake,
And nights of fretful sleep.

We have survived the jeers of strangers
And the blank stares of friends
When we try to define our deformity.

We have survived our self-doubt,
Our worry that we’re no longer feminine,
Our confusion, our obsession, our despair.

Gradually, we find other women
Who share our loss
And we comfort one another.
We are a secret sisterhood.