The Weight of it
For the body that stayed behind
They told me
breastfeeding would melt the weight away—
like fat is obedient
to love.
But here I am,
still wide in the mirror,
still hungry
in places no one sees.
My body is a thrift store now—
everything slightly used,
a little stretched,
not quite what it once was.
I didn’t know
that giving birth
wasn’t the end of giving.
I didn’t know
my body would still
be a home
when I wanted it back.
The world wants
before-and-afters.
Wants the snapback,
the side-by-side proof
that I survived
with style.
But I only have
before-and-during.
And a baby
who holds on
like I’m everything—
not despite the softness,
but maybe because of it.
And maybe one day
my body will be mine again.
Or maybe
this is what it means
to be divine—
to break,
to hold,
to remain.
About the Creator
Carolina Borges
I've been pouring my soul onto paper and word docs since 2014
Poet of motherhood, memory & quiet strength
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More stories from Carolina Borges and writers in Poets and other communities.
The Hours That Aren't Mine
The world goes quiet, and I come alive— not in bold color, but in the soft grayscale of blinking lights and tired eyes. Everyone sleeps. The dishes are done, the baby's breath is steady, and silence finally fits like a sweater I've outgrown but can’t let go.
By Carolina Borges9 months ago in Poets
Getting Serious About Comedy (Part I)
If I were asked to remark on my life and the childhood that paved some road leading me to this point, I would have to say something about all the funny people who surrounded me for the last 26,872 days (and counting). Somewhere along that road, I became a big fan of laughter and the comedy that spawns it – and, I mean not only my own laughter, but the laughter of others, some of which I have actually been responsible for inducing.
By John Oliver Smith7 days ago in Humor
Comments (15)
This is so serene and beautiful, I feel you should have got my spot in the challenge (or Paul's 😁) Very well done!
Well done placing in the challenge 🤗.
Poignant piece. Congrats on your achievement!
This is awesome. A well-deserved placing in Natasha's poetry challenge!! That's how I found you. I'm Bolt, a.k.a Bill. I've subscribed to you. I'm curious too. Your formatting is awesome. How do you create stanzas like that? I hate the extra spacing between each line-- double spaces. And I know of no way to keep lines as tight as yours. Again: excellent artistry! ⚡💙⚡
Tiny versions of yourself is a full time job. You are not you for a long while, congrats on placing.
So beautiful!!
Hey sweet girl if you’re comfortable sending me your Venmo you made third place in my challenge 🙂I don’t see an option to tip
Excellent, such a moving descriptive in verse. Congratulations on your win
Well written… this too shall pass! You will get your body back ‘one day’!✅
Well-wrought and very resonant with your other submission!
Your writing perfectly articulates the transformation growing a human encompasses. Such a pleasure to read your work
Not just saying this (although truth be known, I am a gusher) but I agree with Natasha. You have next level talent. You have an eye for truth, full emotional connection and a prosody that seems artless and yet elevates your verses to artistic brilliance. Your finale is astonishing! Good luck on the challenge!
Amazing lines, body is a thrift store, body would still be a home. So much is expected of women after birth and you wrote it out beautifully
I wrote on this topic about a year ago, although not nearly so eloquently as you have! 💜 If you are interested, it's here: https://shopping-feedback.today/viva/mamas-know%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv class="css-w4qknv-Replies">
Girl I really don’t know how anyone is going to top this! You have given me quite a choice to choose from. Girl you’re talented!