The dresses in the closet stood in line
like the recruits at morning roll call.

I perused them carefully in their orderly row;
touching one, another, ultimately touching all.

I stepped back to ponder which frock to wear
with thought to my mood, my state, my day;

Then I reached for the purple, way in the back
whose color and style simply seemed to say:

Leysa is back and she’s ready for life
closed doors swinging open, her smile intact.

It’s a purple day, a celebration of sorts,
for I’ve signed my name to a new contract.

A resolution, a promise, hell, a guarantee
to live each day fully, one day at a time,

To embrace the gifts, to laugh out loud,
to sing, to write, to compose a rhyme,

To love again, to live, to pray, to rejoice
to tread new paths, to ford new streams.

A purple dress to signify this royal first day –
my new life, with new hopes and new dreams.