The Map of a Body

By Pamela Lombard

She stared at herself in the mirror. Not judging or criticising, just looking. She held up her arm to look at her elbow, then twisted a shoulder, shifted a hip to look at her back. Her eyes trailed down one leg and up the other, stopping at her knee before moving on. She took her time, taking them all in, subconsciously counting. It was like looking at a road map, she thought. Each bruise, each scar, marking a place they’d been, tracing their journey. She dressed gingerly. The fist banged on the door. She flinched and fumbled with the lock, “Coming!”