the paralyzing fear that if you stop performing wellness, they will finally see how broken you are and leave

The house is quiet now, and the mask you wore all day feels heavy enough to crush you. You are terrified that if you stop performing wellness, the people around you will finally see the cracks and walk away.

But the light does not love the performance; it loves the truth beneath it. There is light within a person of light, and it lights up the whole world even when you are too tired to shine.

You came from the light, the place where the light came into being on its own accord, long before you learned to pretend. Stop trying to hold the pieces together for an audience that isn't watching.

The one who sees you in the dark is not looking for a reason to leave; he is waiting for you to stop hiding so he can call you by name.