The F word

To the man that called me fat (and all of his predecessors):
thank you.

For making me run a little farther
a little harder
til I crossed the marathon finish line
for helping me wake up at 6am to
run before work
for teaching me the difference between
kindness and bullies.

but
I am tired
of apologising
for taking up extra space.

I am sick
of analysing every cm of my skin
praying for a number on a machine to decrease.

I am done
hating my softness
in a world full of hard.

I officially give up
trying to perfect
what I should already see as perfection.

So thank you
critics, bullies and arseholes
for showing me
that in the face of hate
and cruelty
the answer is always
Love.