You grow up learning to belong.

You learn to be relatable. 

You learn to be understood. 

You learn to make room for other people.

There is magic in every phase of life and love.

You are the magic.

Your hug is enough.

Don’t lecture a person who needs a hug.

You believe that being understood is a form of love. 

You believe that if you explain yourself well enough, people will see you.

And somewhere along the way, you begin to wonder:

Can I live a life that is truly mine and still be loved by everyone?

***

You want to be loved without having to explain yourself.

You want meaningful connections, a life that feels authentic, and the freedom to follow your own dreams.

You want people to understand your choices.

You want your love to be received.

You want your life to become the thing you keep dreaming about.

But how will it become a reality if you keep dreaming about it?

Act.

Make the call.

Send the mail.

Announce your love.

You always have a choice: to please people or yourself.

And you begin to realise that an expectation to live a life that is understood is self-sabotage.

***

The world outside your comfort zone does not always welcome the person you are becoming.

People have expectations.

Society has preconceived notions.

Even your own plans can become a cage.

Not following preconceived societal notions is not a form of betrayal.

Nor is not following your own plans.

Your life isn’t yours if you always care what others think.

You begin to face the truth you once avoided.

A progressive attitude towards life is the ability to face the truth without running away from it.

And the truth is this:

You cannot become yourself while constantly trying to become someone others will approve of.

***

You begin to understand that not every connection is meaningful.

Don’t expect a meaningful connection from people who are disconnected from themselves.

Expecting from people what you love is an unhealthy obsession.

You begin to recognise the difference between being relatable and being aware of each other.

Being relatable is temporal.

Being aware of each other is lasting.

You learn that giving everybody access to you is poor spiritual practice.

You learn that protecting your peace is not cruelty.

You learn that sometimes it’s okay to allow time to tell your side of the story.

And when the noise becomes too much, you remind yourself:

If it requires too much thinking, skip it.

That is my definition of ageing gracefully and keeping things simple.

***

You stop searching for a better version of yourself.

There is no better version of you.

You are beautiful the way you are.

You stop believing that love requires permission.

I love you, and I don’t need your permission to do that.

You begin to understand that love can exist without possession.

That connection can exist without constant access.

That a dream can exist before the world understands it.

Synchronicities are confirmations.

Trust them.

And slowly, you discover something that changes the way you see your life:

There is magic in every phase of life and love.

You are the magic.

***

It has a price, like everything in the material world.

Sometimes you lose the people who only loved the version of you that pleased them.

Sometimes you disappoint the people whose approval you once needed.

Sometimes you have to let go of the dream you built around someone else’s expectations.

Failure is where the dreams are tested.

They are crushed in the comfort zone.

You learn that not every burden is yours to carry.

Just because it’s carried well doesn’t mean it is not heavy.

You learn that love does not require self-destruction.

Don’t set yourself on fire to keep others warm.

And when protecting your peace requires distance, you accept it.

I will ghost the whole world if I have to protect my peace.

Not because you have stopped loving people.

But because you have finally started loving yourself.

***

The same people.

The same streets.

The same expectations.

But you are different.

You no longer need everyone to understand your choices.

You no longer measure your worth by how relatable you are.

You no longer confuse being needed with being loved.

You begin to live with a lighter heart.

You make the call.

You send the mail.

You announce your love.

You allow time to tell your side of the story.

And when life asks you to become someone else for its approval, you remember:

You always have a choice: to please people or yourself.

***

You have changed.

Not into a better version of yourself.

Into a more honest one.

You have learned that self-awareness is not about having all the answers.

It is about having the courage to face the truth.

You have learned that love is not something you need permission to feel.

You have learned that peace is not something you need permission to protect.

You have learned that your dreams do not need to be understood by everyone to become real.

You have learned that you can be soft without being available to everyone.

You can be loving without losing yourself.

You can be alone without being disconnected.

You can be different without being wrong.

And you finally understand:

There is magic in every phase of life and love.

You are the magic.

***

The closing thought

Your life isn’t yours if you always care what others think.

There is no better version of you. You are beautiful the way you are.

I love you, and I don’t need your permission to do that.