#19 I am enough, just the way I am

I have been told
too many times
I was not beautiful.
And maybe I could learn to fly.
“Someday you will grow up to be
more special, pretty, worthy.”
Just more.

I always knew I was enough,
but their words hurt.
I began to question myself
and my value.

Finally,
I just wanted to be alone.
I turned inward and shut the world
and the voices out.
I built a wall around myself
and vowed not to come out.
The only voice I heard was my own
and, at last, I had found peace.
This quiet place became my normal.

One day my home began to feel small,
even tight.
I didn’t want to leave my sanctuary
and I rolled and shifted to find comfort.
And then I stretched and knocked down a wall.
The sun slipped into my world
and I unfolded my wings.

I flew across the grass,
landing on a lilac bush.

I was still the same inside
And to those who now told me
how beautiful I had become,
I told them,
“I am still the same.
You never looked deep enough.”