8.5.25 // My Existence is Not a Threat

I care about your feelings. I care if something I say or do causes harm, and I want to be accountable for that. That matters to me.
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But I’m learning that I don’t need to care how my existence makes you feel. There’s a difference.
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If my presence, my confidence, my boundaries, or the space I take up makes you uncomfortable—but not unsafe—that’s not mine to hold. My existence is not a threat.
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I’m still working on this, especially as someone who’s spent a lifetime trying to be easy to love, easy to be around, easy to approve of. But shrinking myself to avoid discomfort isn’t the same as being kind. It’s just being small.
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So this is for the people-pleasers. For the ones who’ve been taught to apologize for simply being. You don’t owe anyone an explanation for existing fully. Take up space.