I Had Forgotten Who I Was

I had forgotten that I am the same woman who once walked the streets of a crowded city at night, crying, hungry, cold, exhausted, carrying my child in one arm and two pieces of luggage in the other.

I was not running away.

I was choosing myself

I was choosing to leave;

to protect myself from harm that was emotional, physical, and deeply mental.

I had forgotten that I am the same woman who survived abuse… and still chose courage over comfort.

I was not afraid to be alone then.

But trauma has a way of reshaping you; quietly, deeply; until you don’t recognise your own strength anymore.

I had forgotten that I once walked away from a high paying job;

not out of failure,

but out of self-respect.

I chose peace over prestige.

And when I returned to a place I thought was home,

I realized I didn’t belong there either.

So I moved again.

Started over again.

Built again.

But somewhere in the process of rebuilding,

I forgot something important-

I am the same woman who had the strength to leave everything behind… twice… just to protect her peace.

Somewhere along the way, I began to feel vulnerable, weak, fragile.

But today, I remind myself

I have survived.

And I will survive again.

Loneliness does not scare me.

For I have already walked through it—

and come out stronger.