The struggle for self acceptance

*

In the quiet hours before dawn’s light,

When shadows dance and fears take flight,

I face the mirror, eyes unseeing,

A stranger stares, heartache fleeing.

Years of masks and borrowed faces,

In search of love, in empty places,

I hide my truth, beneath disguise,

Afraid to show, the tears I cry.

The world demands a perfect guise,

Flawless, seamless, a painted prize,

Yet deep within, a voice so small,

Whispers softly, I am enough, after all.

Through nights of doubt and days of pain,

I seek the strength to break the chain,

To stand unmasked, in my own skin,

To let the light of self-love in.

With trembling hands, I shed the past,

The lies, the doubts, I cast them fast,

For in my heart, a truth awakes,

A love for self that never breaks.

Though scars remain, they tell a tale,

Of battles fought, where fears assail,

Yet here I stand, whole and free,

Embracing all that’s truly me.