Shifts in Balance

The first steps feel like anchors, pulling me down,

each movement a reminder of what snapped, and how,

this cast like a heavy cloak, both burden and shield,

I adapt, slowly, to the pressure on my bones,

the rough texture of plaster against my skin,

a constant ache keeping time with my heart.

Days stretch out, a quiet struggle,

a dance of adjusting to a new normal,

as if a shadow of pain is stitched to my side,

every wince, a reminder of balance lost.