I am here.
I am safe.
nothing is hurting me right now.
the room is still and calm.
soft light is shining through the window.
the past hurt, and the future is uncertain,

(the pain of the past echoes into the future with tiny throbs of fear,
small on its own but grows paralyzing with its persistence.)

but right now,
I choose to let go.

(the prickles become softer.)

I am at peace.
I am brave.
I have the courage to face whatever comes.
we are learning from our mistakes
and things will be better.

my anxiety is nothing new…

if you tell me
you are not strong enough,
I will tell you
you are.

it is not by luck
that you’ve come this far.

it is no small feat
to feel so deep

to love as tenderly
and vulnerably as you do

to feel so tired,
so very tired,
you want to just lay down
and be crushed by all the pain—

yet you get up just once more
to find a reason
to smile, to find another way
to make me laugh.

you are the strongest when you feel weak, even if you do not see what I…