Silk and Wires

Written by Elisa Shaholli, with help from the DAC Team

Image Description: A photo of a woman with her arms above her head, shielding her face. She has a dress and shawl made of silk that covers her head and body aside from her arms. On top of the image, barbed wire has been edited in. The wires are white and go from the left to the right side of the photo, spreading across both her wrists and chest.

Growing up, 

I wanted to be silk, 

lace, cashmere—heck, even cotton.

Instead, I got bionic. 

Maybe the wires aren’t threads, 

but they hold me together, 

they keep me warm, 

they make me steady. 

Silk is gentle,  

but maybe that isn’t what I need? 

Wires are rough and sturdy, 

not soft and tender, 

but in a world so vast

why do I need to be silk?