The Deserted Garden
Conceptual photographs commissioned by Rayhan Stapleton for a poem they wrote titled Young Spirit.
YOUNG SPIRIT
“I've seen before, living now, spirits crowded; they show me joy. Touching clouds feeling feat. Inner child – smiled.
What is understood is understood; I'm at war, and I stood out of my comfort, thinking I was misunderstood.
Who's been keeping up with my good? I've seen enough.
They say your situation becomes yours. Mental strains always remain, choked out for using my own words.
My veins maintain consistent pain. Leaving me to succumb, trapped in my mind. This is not my body; this is my experience.
Learning day by day not to let the oppressors' words pull me down, constant battles with healing these scars deep within my roots.
Using natural remedies, I watered my own tree. Blooming into the image of the body I want to be– I am free.”
By Rayhan Stapleton (He/They)
2023