The Girl Who Loves Anyway
By: Jasmine Padgett
July 18, 2025
The Girl Who Loves Anyway
By: Jasmine Padgett
July 18, 2025
She stands before the cracked mirror,
eyes tracing every ounce of doubt-
wondering if the world will ever see her glow
beyond the shadows she chases.
She packs her mind full of "what ifs"
each thought a restless guest
that refuses to leave,
pondering over every moment
she's ever stumbled.
She pulls the dawn into her arms,
rises before the world yawns,
hands slick with coffee steam,
determined to build something beautiful
out of ordinary hours.
She dances with joy over small wonders-
a stranger's warm smile,
the hush of rain,
the way sunlight spills through a cracked window
and whispers, "You belong here."
Her heart holds a blueprint of imperfection-
lines jagged and unfinished-
but she labors at love with reckless faith,
drafting kindness in the margins of her days.
When night circles her with silence,
she lets her scars rest in honest light,
knowing they are constellations
that chart the map back to herself.
At the end of the day,
she is just a girl
who doubts her beauty,
overthinks her choices-yet,
with every breath,
she chooses to love anyway,
to set her fierce, tender spirit loose
into a world that forgot how to wonder.