“I’m proud of you”
are the four words
I always want to hear

As a Words of Affirmation gal,
they’re things I need,
kind of a big deal

I’ve cried plenty,
disappointed in myself
for disappointing you

And eventually
I felt like I had to
make someone else proud too

Each job I left,
each time something didn’t work out
felt like a failure

And every new choice
I worked to make
made me feel like a traitor

I realized I spent so much time
worried if everyone else was proud
I never stopped to think

If I was ever
proud
of myself