SettleUpples

If you’re still hoping someone will understand the version of you you’ve grown into— 𝒔𝒐 𝒂𝒎 𝑰. Not the you you were years ago.Not the you you were to survive.But the you you’ve fought to become. Maybe we didn’t miss our people.Maybe we were just becoming them.

We used to sit here.A summer and a lifetime ago.She hasn’t been back.Today, I returned.Beauty doesn’t go away when someone does.But it echoes differently.

𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩—𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐧…meet you where you’re at and stay—share the load instead of handing you theirs—hold you when it’s your turn to be heavy—make you feel chosen, even through conflict and repair… 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘯𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦.𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘰.

I once thought being strong meant being quiet.It turns out it often meant being afraid.I carried weight without naming it. I thought that was love.It kept me hidden from the people who mattered most. I “protected” others from truths I thought would hurt them. It made us strangers. I’m learning to say the truer thing…

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆𝘀You don’t have to explain everything right away.You don’t have to shrink the ache down to something digestible.You don’t even have to be okay yet.You just have to show up honestly.And they don’t flinch.They don’t rush to fix it.They just stay.That’s what it looks like when someone can hold…

Beautiful line. Mildly alarming romantic imagery. If I saw you gazing at the stars with awe, I think I’d become at least a little envious of the sky. But honestly? I just like the idea of being the man who actually pays attention. The man who appreciates your beauty—seeing the human, sure, but also seeing…