There was a time not long ago 

That I would have been fantasizing the future. 

I would Have laughed and squealed on playground swings. 

There was a time not too long ago

That I would sneak into my parent's bed because their presence was stronger than my fear of the dark. 

A time when I would play make-believe in our backyard. I was a knight and my sword was a stick that had fallen out of the trees. 

There was a time before I was disenchanted with the world. 

When I could look at beauty and not compare myself to it. 

I remember hearing that tummies were bad and should be flat. Well, mine stuck out past my chest less than an inch. 

When was the last time I could look in a mirror without feeling anger that my hair doesn’t look perfect? Or that my eyes were slightly uneven. 

Before I felt disgusted towards my body I felt nothing but delight. So when was the last time I loved myself without conditions? 

When did I feel that I didn’t deserve love? Why did that feed into me finding people who only would push me closer to the edge I was already hanging off? 

When did the most toxic relationship I could have become the one with myself? 

When was our last time being that child? Pure and content, without flaw.