Still Carried [a poem]

You were never asked to be unyielding—
never summoned to rise without faltering,
nor to walk unshaken across uncertain ground.
Only to breathe—
gently, if unevenly—
when breath felt more like a burden than a gift.

Only to place one foot before the other,
not with assurance,
but with the quiet resolve
of one who continues
simply because they must.