So instead, my only option to be loved is to submit to the mortifying ordeal of being known. To wear my heart on my digital sleeve, a proverbial sleeve that’s threads are made up of a sum of all of my writing, social media accounts, in-person interactions, and more, not just a curated feed of minimum viable story filled with dopamine-inducing 280... See more

I want love. Of course, I do. But I fear what it takes from me. I fear the way I let it rearrange me, the way it demands space in my mind even when I fight it. I fear how I lose myself in the wanting.

I used to think love would arrive with certainty, that I would just know . That love would be an unshakable thing, a home I could step into without... See more

maybe because in a world where connection feels scarce, loneliness haunts us. the idea of complete surrender is seductive . and the narrative keeps replaying, because it’s gripping, painful, and undeniably human . it holds up fractured mirrors for us to see not just what love is, but what it can do when we forget to hold ourselves close too.