They told me what I couldn’t do Before they ever asked who I was White coats, clipboards Boxes to check Turned a season into A permanent verdict Called it a ceiling Called it my place Mistook a pause For the end of my race Said “accept it” Like that was peace But surrender dressed up As relief is still defeat Life went quiet Everything stopped When the old road closed That’s when I saw............. Not disabled - redirected Not broken - retooled Lost one lane Built five new tools They said “limit” I heard “learn” Burned the rulebook When the lesson turned Not disabled - diff-ability Watch what grows When you quit chasing normal And listen close Funny thing When one sense dims Others sharpen Let the truth slip in Time slowed down So I finally saw Gifts I never met When I was busy being “strong” Pain stripped noise Left signal clear Turns out stillness Is how gifts appear Some wear diagnoses Like excuses in disguise Calling fear “acceptance” While their life passes by I’m not judging I’ve been there too Just saying sometimes The cage looks like truth Not disabled - redirected This is not the end I didn’t lose myself I finally met them Some days I can’t walk Still I move Because healing’s not perfect It’s practiced - it’s true I don’t need to be normal To be whole I don’t need permission To trust my soul I didn’t give up So I learned how to heal
