Natalie in the Wild

by Natalie

There’s a quiet pause before everything hits—
right after the hurt,
but before I react.

That pause
is where healing begins.

I can’t control what others think.
I can’t stop the words spoken behind my back.
I can’t close the distance that sometimes makes me feel forgotten.

But I can choose how I respond.

And that choice—
that’s where my power lives.

In the space between the wound and the story,

I tell myself.

Between judgment and what I know is true,

I start to rise.

I’m not here to fix the past.
I’m not here to prove my worth.

I’m learning how to stand—
soft, but strong.
Rooted in grace,
not shaped by the opinions of others.

I’m not who they remember.
I’m who I’m becoming.

And when I choose love over shame,
when I give myself room to breathe,
when I reach for hope instead of helplessness—

that’s when I know
I am free.