THEIR OWN CURRENCY by Tatiana Perez (California, 18)

Her ribs poke through her shirt,
          all she can fit is size extra-small. She gets worried looks as she walks down the street and
feels                                                 a sense of triumph.
Another, wears testaments of her own
                        self-hatred
                                    across
                                                her wrists.
Wearing it like a badge of honor. Each struggle to showcase the highest degree of
          self-loathing,

                                  these acts their own currency.

Which only others like themselves abide by. What they don’t realize is there is
no
            beauty
                                  in their suffering.
                       No solace in pain. And this currency, doesn’t exist.



Tatiana Perez (she/her) is 18 years old and was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. Currently, she's a rising sophomore who attends an accredited Cal State in southern California where she is majoring in Film Production with a minor in Japanese. And she hopes one day she can create art that transcends the barriers of language.