When We Are Seen 

There is a softening

deep in our chests,

in the tender curve of our bellies,

in the roots of our breath.

A loosening of the armor

we thought we had to wear.

When we are met

without being asked to be smaller,

when no one tries to shape us

into something more palatable,

we unfold.

The resonance hums through our bones:

we are enough.

This brightness,

this humanness,

is not too much…

it is the song we came here to sing.

To be seen in this way

is to feel the sacred mirror of love

pressed gently against our being.

Every cell awakens,

every part of us whispers,

yes… stay.

In that presence,

we remember the truth:

that love does not tolerate,

it celebrates.

That we are most ourselves

when we are met with eyes

that do not turn away.

And in that meeting,

we feel our best selves rising…

not because we have been molded,

but because we have been allowed

to remain

exactly who we are…

And to grow,

when and if we choose to.

– Amy N.