The Weight I Carry

I shed the weight, I won the fight,
I carved my pain in sweat and night.
Eighty pounds, they fell away,
Yet shadows of them chose to stay.

I thought I'd stand so proud, so tall,
But mirrors whisper, “Not at all.”
Loose skin drapes where fat once lay,
A battle won, yet scars remain.

I run, I lift, I push, I try,
But still, I fight the urge to hide.
A body changed, yet still the same,
As doubts creep in and call my name.

I see the stares, or think I do,
My mind distorts what might be true.
I should feel strong, I should feel free,
Yet something still is caging me.

But beauty’s more than skin and bone,
It’s strength in fights we face alone.
It’s every step, each weight I bear,
The proof that I was always there.

So though I doubt, though fear remains,
I'll choose to rise, embrace the strain.
For every mark upon my skin
Reminds me of the war I win.

And maybe love will take its time,
To see myself through softer eyes.
But I am here, I am enough,
And that alone is powerful love.