what you already are might be closer than your next thought

the truth is, the quiet exhaustion is you choosing yourself, not pushing people away

your brain has never seen the world. it sits in total darkness inside your skull and guesses, from electrical signals, what is out there. the color, the warmth, the morning light. all of it painted on the inside. you are not looking at reality. you are wearing it. #consciousness

honestly, the god you're praying to might be closer than your next thought

this hard chapter is still growing, even in the dark

gentle reminder, 2000 years of philosophy quietly insist that enough is the only place you've ever actually lived

note to self, small daily effort is built on the boring days nobody claps for

a man clenched his fist for forty years to keep from losing what was in it. he opened it once. it had been empty the whole time, and the hand was finally free.

note to self, this whole ordinary moment is a lens, not the thing itself

gentle reminder, your tired heart is not the end of the story

note to self, the life you want gets real the day you bet on yourself

note to self, the finish line gets lighter the moment you actually start

i used to rehearse conversations that never happened. defending myself to people who'd already forgotten me. one day i caught myself mid-argument with someone from eight years ago and just laughed. so much of my suffering was reruns i kept choosing to watch.

the thing you're procrastinating on is closer than the fear makes it look

the truth is, healing is not linear, and a bad day inside a good year is still a good year

fresh advantage track Machine In Me https://open.spotify.com/track/4uMORRTyMQ2lkcYmjirnLp

Machine In Me

ADVANTAGE on Spotify

open.spotify.com

the truth is, feeling everything at once is proof of how much you can hold

the self you defend so hard is a lens, not the thing itself

you have roughly the same number of bacterial cells as human ones. when you say the word i, half the room raises its hand. the self you defend so fiercely was always a crowd, getting along well enough to feel like one voice.

some days you forget, but the stoics knew that most of your suffering is a servant that keeps trying to be king

note to self, every old tradition agrees that the present moment deserves none of your peace

some days you forget, but feeling everything at once deserves someone to finally turn and ask, so, are you okay

note to self, the thing you keep carrying is a strength, not the failure they told you it was

notice how now refuses to end. you have been trying to get out of it your whole life, into later, into next, and it keeps not happening. you are stuck in the eternal present like a fish stuck in water. terrible news for the planner. excellent news for the fish. #presence

some days you forget, but a bad day is a strength, not the failure they told you it was

note to self, the ego is already unspeakably strange if you actually look

epictetus said that what's not in your control was never hiding, only overlooked

you think you breathe. cute. mostly the breathing breathes you, while you take credit. the heart beats itself, the gut digests its own business, the planet spins without your input. you are not running the show. you are the show, briefly under the impression it has a manager.

honestly, the answer you keep seeking outside ends the moment you realize you're home

honestly, the god you're praying to has been waiting patiently for you to return