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You’re Not Defined By What You’re Not

October 8, 2020 June 16, 2022
the poem Not by Erin Hanson

Ginnie Sophia did this lovely video based on the poem.

Here’s the text rather than graphic version of Not by Erin Hanson:

You are not your age,
Nor the size of clothes you wear,
You are not a weight,
Or the colour of your hair.

You are not your name,
Or the dimples in your cheeks,
You are all the books you read,
And all the words you speak,

You are your croaky morning voice,
And the smiles you try to hide,
You’re the sweetness in your laughter,
And every tear you’ve cried,

You’re the songs you sing so loudly,
When you know you’re all alone,
You’re the places that you’ve been to,
And the one that you call home,

You’re the things that you believe in,
And the people that you love,
You’re the photos in your bedroom,
And the future you dream of,

You’re made of so much beauty,
But it seems that you forgot,
When you decided that you were defined,
By all the things you’re not.

You can find Erin Hanson on her Instagram and Facebook.

Mental health coping toolkit

The Coping Toolkit page has a broad collection of resources to support mental health and well-being.

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