Where She Couldn’t Follow

You were meant to be my first home,

my shelter, my mirror,

the voice that taught me I was enough.

But, instead you vanished even when you were near.

Your love, a rumor,

your touch, a storm.

I reached for you and found only shadows,

a woman who carried my body into the world but forgot to carry my soul.

And yet,

I did not stay broken.

I stitched myself together from the scraps you left,

from the hunger of wanting more than you could give.

I built a spine out of silence.

I built a heart out of every “no” you never softened.

I built a life where you could not follow.

I rose; not in spite of you,

but because of the emptiness you carved into me.

I filled it with fire.

I filled it with worth.

I filled it with a self you would never recognize, but others would.

I became someone worth knowing.

I became someone I wish you had been able to see.

And though you failed me, I will not fail myself.