Am I lonely? 🪽

I’ve asked myself this question on the quietest nights, the ones where the bed felt too big and my phone stayed still. I’d scroll past pictures of couples holding hands in cafés or laughing under string lights and wonder if I was just expecting too much. But the older I get, the more I understand that settling is not the same as compromising. Compromising is meeting halfway. Settling is forgetting where you were even going. There was a time I stayed with someone who made me feel like I was always too much or not quite enough. I’d soften my voice, ignore the pit in my stomach, and tell myself that love means being patient. But I wasn’t being patient. I was being quiet about the things that mattered to me. I kept giving pieces of myself just to keep the peace, until I realized I was vanishing in the process. That kind of peace was just pretending. Now, I know what I need. I know that being alone is softer than being with someone who makes me feel invisible. I want a love where I don’t have to tone myself down to be held. A love that feels like sunlight through curtains, quiet but full. And until then, I will wait. Not because I’m hard to please, but because I’ve finally learned how to love myself enough not to settle. #dontsettleforsmalllove #chooseyourselffirst #knowyourvalue #lovefully #selfrespectmatters 🤍

• Compromise
• Standards
• Relationship