For the Ones Who Have Learned the Hard Way

You were not made
to be consumed,
but to be beloved.

You were not meant to expand until
someone else decided, “Enough.”
You were made to live in the boundaries
of your body.

You were not made to jump through hoops,
but to be
tethered and grounded.

You are not here to fill the space
that someone demands of you,
and not here to shrink.
Take the space that is only yours.

You do not need to be faster or stronger.
(Do you feel how you’re softening?)
You were not made to perform
someone else’s choreography;
but for your own dance–
a bird with a song,
fluttering and unburdened.

You do not exist for half a life,
not for sleepwalking, or running away.
You exist for abundance and beauty;
to be alive and to say:

I see it all,
eyes wide open.
I am here. I am staying.
I am a creator, a reclaimer,
A dreamer, a lover,
I belong to my body,
And my body to me.
For once–and forever–
finally, finally, finally,
I am awake,
and I am free.

In what ways do you
feel yourself softening?

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ASHLEY WARD is an aspiring therapist, student, storyteller, writer, wife, and mom. Chronically dehydrated, teller of inappropriate jokes, happiest on a walk or watching a football game. She is softening to the reclamation of goodness and beauty in her life, and believing relentlessly in the kindness of Jesus. Find her work and follow her on Instagram at @ashley.m.ward.