The Weight We Carry - Art as Activism

The fifth piece in Mikayla’s Art as Activism series, “The Weight We Carry,” turns toward the quiet burdens survivors often carry. Those invisible, unspoken traumas that walk beside us even as we move forward.

This piece explores the quiet, unspoken burdens we all carry through life. A girl walks forward, her ankle chained to an elephant behind her. It represents the weight of lived experiences, memories and traumas that shape us. The elephant is gentle, yet it’s presence is prominent. It reminds us that our past is not something we can discard; it travels with us.

For some, these burdens feel heavy and constraining. For others, over time, they become companions, reminders of resilience and survival.

Above, the sky is filled with stars, symbols of hope, possibility and guidance. They illuminate the darkness and remind us that even while tethered to our histories, we also exist within vast expanses of wonder, healing and connection.

“The Weight We Carry” is about the paradox of trauma: how it can both ground us and weigh us down, yet also shape the strength and beauty of who we become.

What would change if we saw our past experiences and trauma not as weaknesses to hide, but as markers of the strength it takes to survive?

“The Weight We Carry” invites the viewer to witness both heaviness and hope. To understand that healing is not about forgetting or severing the past but about learning to walk forward, tethered and transformed.