My New Favorite Word

She walked on the brick path into the misty trees. The water in between the cracks under her feet echoed each step into the cold air. Reaching down to tie her shoe her hand caressed the ground. The color of scarlet leaked over the cracked glass on the path. Mindless of the pain she gathered the sharp edges together. A reflection appeared. Wet snarled hair. Mud smudged across her chin. Eyes, deep as the coffee she inhaled earlier. An expression with a slight curve upward showed so much pain. Hurt. Hardship. Overthinking. Overcoming. Strength. Beauty. Grace... Love...

They run like they will never reach the end. Trying to keep up with time yet falling behind. So much effort ... yet never reaching their destination. Breathing hard. Exhauhsted. Never seeing the final outcome.

Statements come out of a mouth just to be caught in a confronting lie. Validations not validated anymore. Questions that had certainty behind the answers are now running loose on a string. No where to go. No one to answer to. Knives that were once healed into the flesh behind the spine pulled out to open the wound back up. Turning around with no one responsible.

The mirror. The Reflection. The wind blew through and faintly whispered "Fall in love with you".

She gathered the pieces. Stood up, put them in her pocket and traveled home. She framed it and hung it by her bedside. She looked in it every morning. After awhile she stopped resisting her reflection. Beauty. Grace. Compliments. Started filling her head. Affirming the questions that were left without answers. Bandaging the wounds that were left uncared for. Capturing and validating the thoughts that ran wild in her head. She walked on the brick path with her head up instead of looking at the water that crept in the cracks beneath her. Bodies passing by would compliment her and instead of her rejecting she embraced it. Smile. Self-Affirmation. Self-Acceptance.

My New Favorite Word. Love..

She decided that it was ok to Love herself regardless of the actions around her. She decided that it was ok to validate her own feelings regardless of the invalidation around her. She decided that regardless of peoples opinions on her beauty she was going to look into a broken mirror that brought back pain, hardship, and tears, and love her smile, her eyes, her hair, and her being.

And that was good enough.

That was beautiful...