Safe Even With Tears Still Wet

The key turns in the lock. That sound is a siren that sends you scrambling to wipe your face, to arrange your features into something acceptable before the door swings open.

You are terrified they will see the mess behind the mask. But the light does not need your performance.

It does not require you to be composed. There is a peace that does not depend on how well you have hidden your cracks.

— The light sees you before you even manage to smile. It sees the exhaustion and the effort and the fear, and it does not turn away.

You do not have to finish fixing yourself to be loved. The door is opening, and the One who enters knows exactly who you are beneath the arrangement.

You are safe, even with the tears still wet.