Rising From Ashes

I was born into darkness, a world full of lies, Sold by the one meant to shelter my cries. In the hands of strangers, my worth was defined By the hunger for drugs, my body confined. A child turned slave in my uncle’s cold home, A Cinderella with no fairytale to own. Cooking and cleaning, no dreams to explore, Just a ghost in their house, always doing more. But school was my freedom, my breath in the night, Where I could escape, even just for a while, and feel light. Then came the man who saw nothing but skin, A baby maker, a punching bag for his sins. I wore his bruises like chains on my soul, And soon I was lost in a world with no goal. Homeless, with babies I couldn’t protect, Forced to give them up, my heart wrecked. Living on the streets, the sky my roof, Despair wrapped around me, relentless and aloof. I chased every high, every fleeting escape, Found solace in bottles, in wounds that would gape. Promiscuity a mask for the pain I denied, But each thrill was a dagger, cutting deeper inside. State to state, man to man, I thought I could run, but never outran The weight of my past, the shadows in tow— Each new place, a prison where I couldn't grow. But now I stand in the mirror, alone yet free, Learning who I am, who I’m meant to be. Outside the chaos, the violence, the noise, Beyond all the brokenness, I reclaim my voice. I am not who they made me, nor what they designed, I am love, I am light, with a heart that’s kind. Through scars and hurt, I still rise above, A soul that refuses to give up on love. For I am a survivor, a phoenix in flight, And I’ll shine in this world, no longer afraid of the night. I am beauty, I am strength, I am more than they knew— I am me, whole and true.