when i became me

I wrote this poem while retreating in solitude + silence in Southern Oregon. I spent 8 days in a treehouse, deep in the woods, without a single person in sight other than myself. I wrote in my journal for hours each day, drank only fresh squeezed orange juice, wore clothes only when I felt a little chilly, napped when I felt tired and cut off access to my cell phone, car and computer. I was in heaven. Even though I have retreated in solitude + silence several times in my adult life, this time was different. This time I gained more insights, reached new levels of peace and felt more free than I ever had before.

When I Became Me

I took it off.

I slowly removed every expectation & limiting belief ever handed to me.

I traded in the suffocating good girl costume for something less predictable.

I severed ties with anyone asking me to give up pieces of myself I’d rather keep.

I broke up with fear & learned how to make love to every moment I encounter.

I let go of people who are incapable of holding space for all of me.

I shed layers upon layers of sorrow & pain just to find my way back to my heart.

I ripped off the shackles of shame & ran as fast as I could toward freedom.

I stripped down to my bare soul & saw the woman I have always wanted to be.

I became me when I released what was no longer mine to carry.

I became free when I became me.

written by Zella Sage