You Do Not Have to Perform for the Light

The key turns. The lock clicks.

And before the door even opens, your shoulders tighten because you know what waits on the other side: the performance. The mask.

The exhausting act of being 'okay' one more time. You stand on the threshold, hand on the knob, wondering how you will summon the energy to walk in and pretend you are not breaking.

But listen — the kingdom is not a stage you have to enter. It is already inside you.

It was there before you locked the door this morning, and it is here now, waiting for you to put the bag down. You do not have to perform for the light.

It does not need your smile or your small talk or your composed face. It only needs you to stop.

To sit. To let the mask fall where it stands.

The light is not impressed by your ability to hold it together. It is waiting for the moment you finally let go.