Cursed Transformation Poem by Karen Edwards

Let me get this off my chest
like the ill-fitting bra
that has been suffocating
me since before dawn.
For these next few moments,
I shall not be stifled,
so in lady-like fashion
I preemptively beg your
forgiveness for my outburst.

I am a woman of middle years,
the glow of youth now faded.
I stand at the precipice
of a new chapter.
Slowly going through the 'change'.
That cursed transformation:

Mind blowing
Emotional roller-coaster
Nights soaked in sweat
Offset by
Periods of normalcy
After months of
Unbearable hot flashes
Silently suffering
Enduring the inevitable

They say women are the weaker sex
I dare a man to live through this.
Awkward, unsure
guided by a mind clouded by
hormones running rampant.
Trying to catch my breath,
to come to terms with it all
while attempting to pretend
there is nothing wrong,
and failing.

All women face it
I know I am not the first.
It is merely
the price of being a woman.
The dues paid for
bringing forth life.