Rin Amelia-Brogan Kirby

I signed it off in black and white

Watched my old self lose the fight

New name printed, clean and neat

Like I could outrun what’s underneath

They say it’s just a word you choose

But I had too much left to lose

So I buried her in paperwork

Hoping it would finally work

If I sound different when they call

Maybe I won’t feel it all

I changed my name to feel brand new

Like I could cut my past in two

But every mirror still reflects

All the things I can’t forget

Every scar still spells it out

Things I never talk about

I can rename, I can pretend

But I still live inside my skin

They say it suits me, fits me well

Like they can’t see the living hell

Of all the reasons I erased

The girl I used to have to face

I answer now without a pause

Like it was always mine because

It’s easier than explaining why

I had to let that person die

But ghosts don’t leave with just a change

They follow close, they know your name

I changed my name to feel brand new

Like I could cut my past in two

But every mirror still reflects

All the things I can’t forget

Every scar still spells it out

Things I never talk about

I can rename, I can pretend

But I still live inside my skin

Every mark across my arms

Isn’t random, isn’t harm

It’s a timeline I can’t erase

Written deep beneath the surface

Each one holds a silent truth

Moments I survived in youth

You won’t see it, you won’t know

But I remember every blow

I thought a name could set me free

Rewrite who I’m meant to be

But healing isn’t black and white

It doesn’t change overnight

Still I try to breathe it in

This new life I’m standing in

I changed my name, I made the break

Did whatever it would take

Not to be who I once was

Or feel the weight of it because

Every scar still lives with me

Part of my identity

And maybe I don’t need to run

From everything that I’ve become

So call me something new out loud

I’ll wear it like a different crown

But underneath, it’s always been

The same heart beating through my skin