Defeated. Coward. Gutless. Weak. Perceptions define the man that I have become on the inside. The world may not see me this way, but this is who I am. Sullied. Contaminated. Worthless. Masked. The way I perceive myself affects every aspect of my life. The world may see a perfectly clean person, but on the inside, I am nothing but dirty and scarred. The world sees us one way. We see ourselves another. Perceptions are what we’ve given ourselves. Perceptions of what we think we deserve. *INCLUDES THE SHORT STORY: SAVIOR