The Awakening Poem

I wrote this poem to help others who, like me, have endured great loss or have faced difficult life challenges and could therefore benefit from feeling hope or become inspired. I began writing The Awakening, the poem featured on the home page of this site, when my mother was undergoing chemotherapy, knowing I would lose her sooner than I had expected. 

 

I printed a draft of my work to share with friends for feedback, but at some point a copy was stolen and eventually uploaded online—without my knowledge and more importantly, without my consent. Soon after, altered versions began appearing across multiple social media platforms. 

 

Some people shared my work as “Author Unknown,” thanking whoever wrote it for helping them through difficult times. I was deeply humbled and deeply moved that my words could reach and support others. After all, the ability to touch people is what makes writing worth it. And by the time I realized what happened, my poem had traveled the world helping many. 

 

Others, however, falsely claimed my work as their own.

 

I discovered people arguing online over ownership of something I had written—while I remained completely unaware it was even happening at first, but a simple search quickly revealed more than I expected. One individual, in particular, fought for credit as if their identity depended on it. It made me reflect on how painful it must be to feel so unseen for that person, where claiming someone else’s work becomes the only way to feel valued.....or seen. 

 

I read LIE after LIE about something they did not create, it was both baffling and disheartening. Their behavior revealed a kind of desperation—an emptiness that no amount of false recognition can truly fill. I saw their inner hatred, I realized they felt self loathing from feeling worthless. And, I oddly enough felt sad for them because I realized the only thing driving them was their EGO. These people were fixated on getting validated by complete strangers online only via stealing from a complete stranger. It was just about materialism and superficial worth for them. 

 

One person even claimed the poem was about a “bad breakup.” As I read that, I could not help but return to the moment that inspired me to write the poem: watching my mother endure chemotherapy session after session, watching her fragile body be exhausted, ultimately wasting away on a hospital bed, knowing she would soon lose the fight for her life. Because it was that pain, that experience, what helped me realize what is truly important in life, thus giving birth to The Awakening.

 

This poem comes from lived experience—from knowing loss, from reaching internal growth, and from a reflection that can only exist after you let go of the worst human weakness, the EGO. These words therefore, could only be composed by someone who has first handedly realized what truly matters in life is NOT recognition, but recognizing that the true value of life is in giving, not in taking....and that time is irreplaceable. 

 

Thus, my words were written to help others—as a gift to humanity, not to be taken, altered, or used for personal recognition by those who have not done the necessary inner work and who can therefore not write original works.

 

To those who have plagiarized my work: I hope you reflect on why you felt the need to do so. STOP and think how your EGO controls you. Creating something original, something that will be this loved, requires courage, vulnerability, self awareness, and self-acceptance. Moreover, it requires letting go of your EGO and of all negativity. Because you cannot write from a place of compassion if you are mostly driven by ENVY and EGO, because true expression that is appealing to others comes from genuine kindness and LOVE, it comes from being selfless.

 

On the other hand, selfish people who plagiarize and alter literary works with empty expressions, cause original messages to be lost, via poorly chosen words that mostly reflect those ego driven personalities. 

 

My intention with this poem has never been to seek personal gain as may be the case for the people who plagiarized me. My hope is that those who read my work find comfort, hope, strength, and inspiration.

 

Despite everything, I am grateful. My poem has reached several people around the world and it has helped many—and that is what matters most to me. Besides, I know the truth of where this poem came from. I know the truth about these words.

 

To those who have shared unauthorized versions: I kindly ask that you replace them with the authentic, unaltered version and provide proper credit to the original author, Judith Espinosa, out of respect for literacy. 

 

To everyone who has supported and respected my work—thank you!

 

All versions of The Awakening beginning with “There comes a time in life when you finally get it…” that are not as seen on this site, or without proper credits to Judith Espinosa, are unauthorized.

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To the plagiarizer, the more you steal, the less you are worth; the more you will feel worthless. May you strive instead to rid yourself of EGO driven acts so that you may create original works from a place of love and therefore, learn to value yourself and in turn, be capable of valuing and respecting others.  

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Namaste!

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Judith Espinosa, the author

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