I used to invite everyone into my pillow fort.

Most people hadn’t earned my trust, but I gave it to them anyways. 

(Because I really love people and connection.)

“Come close, and I’ll tell you my secrets.”

The thing is, I was looking for someone to validate my heartache.

And, sometimes, it took a whole lot of sharing to get there.

I think many of us have done this.

Maybe to win someone to our side.

Maybe to persuade someone to see as we do.

Maybe because, dare I say, we were looking for someone to help us carry our pain.

But the truth is, you don’t have to prove your pain to anyone for it to be real and for it to matter.

Because the reality is liberating:

The ones who love you will listen.

The ones who love you will believe you the first time.

And the ones who love you will earn that spot in the pillow fort of your heart.

The unfortunate news is that no person – no matter how much you love them – will be able to lighten your load or solve your problems.

But, when we share our world with the right people, something even better happens:

We find the strength to take another step forward.

Maybe not immediately.
Maybe not dramatically.

But forward.

So, hold the ones who accept and appreciate you close.

Because the pillow fort is only so big.

And life is just too short to spend it looking for the peace that only you can unlock. 

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