Member-only story
I Crave Validation More Than I’d Like to Admit
On how a concern for my safety made me doubt my whole purpose and excitement.
for non-members, friend linkʼs here: 💌
There’s a particular kind of ache that comes not from outright rejection, but from hesitation. The kind that makes your chest tighten—not because someone said no, but because they didn’t say yes the way you hoped they would. A friend texted me about a weekend creative writing retreat. It wasn’t huge, but to me, it felt like something rare and golden.
It was my first real chance to put myself out there, in the real world. After weeks, months of writing behind the screen just to expand my social bubble and rediscover myself. A chance to finally try something I had always watched from the sidelines. So I cleared my schedule, even if it meant sacrificing some of my study days. Sacrificing my time at home. And I wasn’t scared of the commitment.
For the first time in a while, I was willing to say yes to myself — to take a chance. I was buzzing. Hopeful. Nervous, but in a good way. So I shared it with someone I love. And he wasn’t against it. He didn’t forbid it or say it was a bad idea. He was just.. concerned. Protective. Cautious. Logical.
