Hlelolwenkosi7 - Dare To Live.

mary oliver, upstream

I thought of a poem, but I cannot pen its words down. They are too heavy to be carried out my mind. Too artistic and beautiful to ever escape the confines of my brain.

“I must learn to love the fool in me - the one who feels too much, talks too much, takes too many chances, wins sometimes and loses often, lacks self-control, loves and hates, hurts and gets hurt, promises and breaks promises, laughs and cries.”

— Theodore Isaac Rubin

– Schuyler Peck, "The Greatest Act of Self-Love Isn't Always Pretty" (Instagram Account: "hiitssky")

[TEXT ID: I TOOK CARE OF MYSELF and it wasn't beautiful.

I took care of myself / and looked at the overdue bills / in the face, even though it hurt. / I took care of myself / and cried ugly through the therapy session; / made another appointment for next week.

I put in the work and wrote / all the bad memories in detail; / apologized to all the friends / I didn't have the energy to talk to. / I finally cut off all my dead ends / and bought produce-slimly avoided / sustaining myself on barbecue chips and poetry. / I recycled. / I set an alarm for 8 hours of sleep / and did not sleep more or less.

I took care of myself / and it wasn't bubble baths, / It wasn't lotion at Bath and Bodyworks / and three cheese pizza. It was uncomfortable. / It wasn't beautiful, / but I am, / and it didn't have to be beautiful / to be worth it. END ID]

Alice Miller, The Drama of the Gifted Child: The Search for the True Self

You don’t need to be at your best for your life to have value and to be appreciated and seen.

After getting what you prayed for, pray for discipline to keep it and wisdom to multiply it.