so much of adulthood is just grieving in secret. grieving ex lovers, grieving dead friendships, grieving your parents sinking into old age, grieving the person you thought you'd grow into. grieving cities you never got to live in. grieving parts of you that couldn't survive.
Can we talk about how exhausting it is to be emotionally intelligent in situations that don't deserve your understanding. To see everyone's perspective when nobody is extending the same courtesy to yours. To regulate your reactions while others express everything without filter or consequence. To be the bigger person so consistently that nobody even acknowledges it requires effort. Emotional intelligence is a gift.
Ngl in order to become a better person, you must first realize how horrible you really are. not in the dramatic sense, but in the quiet ways you sabotage yourself, repeat unhealthy patterns, hurt people who care about you, or tolerate what wounds you. you cannot grow if you keep pretending you're innocent in the story you created
I think the purest form of love is just wanting someone to notice life with you. "taste this. look at that. hear this song." again and again. until you can't imagine noticing life without them.
Stop watching short-form videos.
Meta-analysis of ~100k people shows how it is associated with decreased cognition and increased stress + anxiety.
I know this is correlation, not causation but ask yourself - do you feel great after a session of consuming reels/shorts?