On a day of roses and blush skies,
When fondness enfolds in sweet replies,
I lapsed underneath the silent sun
And asked my heart, “Have I begun?”
Have I begun to grasp my hand
When thunderstorms of doubt I stand?
Have I articulated soft and true,
The expressions I yearned to hear from you?
I looked for love in many eyes,
In promises and heart-breaking goodbyes,
So softly then, I decided to stay,
With every weakness I had once 
shoved away.
To love myself was not to glory,
Nor construct a self-satisfied, shining post.
It was to sit with speechless fears
And rinse away my hidden tears.
It was to say a sensitive “No”
When something gloomy hid my glow.
To keeper of my peace, to assert my space,
To glorify love, to move with kindness.
In quiet rooms where visions unfold, 
I found a bravery made of gold.
I laughed at the girl I used to be,
Gentle with hope, eventually learning to see.
With bravery, she accomplished it all,
And learnt to rise every time she would fall.
Gradually, with quiet honor,
She established her strength, her place.
And like the Sun at the break of day,
She blossomed in her own gentle way.
So here’s a promise, both fierce and free
To cherish who I am spelled to be.
To pick myself, through broad and trim,
To construct my home below my skin.
For love is art and I accept -
The finest masterpiece is me!

 
          By Priyanka Shrivas