That talk with Barbara today

She said, how have you been dealing with the guy?

and I said,

I don't want to talk about it to people,
not because I don't want to talk about it.
But because I don't want their pity, their condolences,
to be treated as though I am weak or damaged,
with kid gloves,
or as a freak.
I don't want them to see me as a victim
when I see myself as stronger than I've ever been.

And I've found a peace with myself now that I'm living in the present.
And while I can talk about the past,
I refuse to live in it.
Don't place me there in your mind,
because I will fight you to the death

like I fought the guy to survive.