The silence I maintain is not an absence of words, but a calculated archive of every lesson I have learned the hard way.
I stopped explaining my intentions to those who were already committed to misunderstanding me, because my truth requires no audience to be valid.
The version of me that was easily broken died in the fires of betrayal, and what remains is a structure built to withstand any storm.
I realized that my empathy was a gift I was giving to people who didn't even know how to hold a conversation, let alone a connection.
I no longer seek a place at tables where my presence is treated as a favor I simply build my own empire where the standards are set by me.
I stopped explaining my intentions to those who were already committed to misunderstanding me, because my truth requires no audience to be valid.
The version of me that was easily broken died in the fires of betrayal, and what remains is a structure built to withstand any storm.
I realized that my empathy was a gift I was giving to people who didn't even know how to hold a conversation, let alone a connection.
I no longer seek a place at tables where my presence is treated as a favor I simply build my own empire where the standards are set by me.