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  • Stand tall

    I have thought and thought about the old me , and honestly no matter how long I think or think of the old version, there’s no old version.I have watched myself and the younger me, and through it all, I have always faced obstacles and have always had to overcome from graduating early in school to your mechanic career, the younger me would say YEP you just got older but your drive GOT STRONGER, you never quit and at times Maybe you should have.You helped your family and Never backed down.GREAT JOB,IM PROUD of you.So in finishing, DON’T CHANGE, IM PROUD OF YOU

    leroybragg

    Voting starts July 2, 2025 12:00am

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    • Leroy, this is so sweet! I’m so happy that you have little regret regarding your determination in the past. A lot of people wish they had done more, but hearing someone who is content with who they were is a nice breath of fresh air. Thank you for sharing ☻

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  • mrmann submitted a contest entry to Group logo of What would the old version of you say to the new version of you?What would the old version or you say to the new version of you? 2 months, 3 weeks ago

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    embrace the spark.

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  • Letter to my Ex

    I am sorry that I couldn’t take all that is clay in you and throw it hard on some wheel
    Turn a heavy mug with a nice curve
    The kind everyone loves at craft fairs

    And I am sorry
    That you couldn’t take all that’s sand in me
    To apply mortar and water sufficiently
    For a solid level
    Slab

    Mostly
    I feel sorry
    That our needs and lacks
    Exceeded
    Our expertise

    …. ….

    With much regret I took from you
    One ruby and two emeralds
    Luckily you found tourmaline and garnets
    To sustain you
    And one diamond who is never disrespectful at the dinner table

    I regret leaving our house of brick and mortar
    For a trailer without a floor and a life without sleep
    Honestly I was just glad to rest my head against a wall that didn’t shout
    So I left anyway, regrets and all.

    Regretfully sorry,
    The person that was Your Wife so long ago

    Ruth Liew

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  • Do you remember me?

    Do you remember me?
    The girl you used to be, before, well… Everything I guess. I know you have blocked me out, and in a way I guess I don’t blame you, but from time to time I wish you would think about me.
    Do you remember me?
    I am quiet, kind, and spend a lot of time on my own. I wish you remembered that it’s not a bad thing to be alone. Not all company is good company, and if you aren’t content in your own presence, then why would you expect anyone else to be? I understand that your mind is a frightening place these days, but maybe running from the memories is part of what is making you hold onto them.
    Do you remember me?
    I am the girl that used to cry when I got in trouble, and I have an obsession with Barbie dolls. I wish you remembered how much I love to take care of them. You did the same thing with your daughters when you had them, and it would be better for them and you if you hadn’t worried so much about throwing your middle finger in the air at everyone for what they said about you as a mom as soon as you got a taste of rebellion and a bad attitude, and instead focused more on how you actually were as one. You really only proved them right in the end. For a while anyway.
    Do you remember me?
    I am dorky I guess. I go to plays with my Grandma, and play dress up with my cousins. Girls night with my friends are what I look forward to often. You wouldn’t know what that’s like anymore. You avoid Grandma because her dementia is getting worse and you know it’ll hurt less if you don’t see her much before she goes. Plus you couldn’t bear to see Papa like that. Nevermind the fact that family is probably the only thing holding him together. And girl friends? What the hell are those? You’ve given those up and replaced them with men. I wish you could spend a night with your best friend, sipping “happy tea,” and watching Anchorman, laughing so hard you cried. You might recall what it feels like to have a real kinship with someone that you don’t share a bed with.
    Do you remember me?
    I harbor innocence and imagination. The thought of even kissing the person that I like is enough to send shivers up my spine. I wish you would have slowed down in that area. I get it that things happened to you that made you bitter, scared, and angry. You didn’t have to be so easy though. No one will respect you if you don’t respect yourself. You aren’t a sex icon. You’re horny because you do drugs, and you became a hooker because you were poor and sick of living on the street. Just because you made a lot of money, it doesn’t restore your dignity.
    Do you remember me?
    I’m gentle and forgiving. Which is why even though I don’t understand what you’ve done, I still will forgive you. Someday. You’ve come this far, and you haven’t given up, so you should be proud of that. The world has become an ugly and evil place I guess, especially in the life you got wrapped up in.
    I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I rushed you, and I’m sorry that I didn’t teach you to love yourself better. You may not have ended up in such a predicament. What do I know, though? I’m just a kid, and I’m only going off of the examples that have been set for me. It’s really crazy how we adopt the same behaviors that make us cringe when we are young. Anyway, I’m sorry that I didn’t give you the confidence in yourself to combat what was said about you with the girls, and I’m sorry that the me inside of you made you cower down when it came time to fight for them. It’s not over yet, and you have made a ton of strides in the right direction, but please, please remember. That everything you have worked so hard to build can be ripped away from you just as fast, if not faster. Don’t lose focus. And one last thing…. Don’t forget where you came from. Every now and again, if you could, just please try and think of me.

    Style Score: 91%

    Kendy Bendewald

    Voting starts July 2, 2025 12:00am

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    • Kendra, thank you for sharing such a deep and honest part of your life. Remember that your childhood (the good and bad parts) is always going to be a part of you. You wouldn’t be the same without it! I hope that you continue to find yourself in your journey, and I hope that you embrace your childhood piece by piece. ☻

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  • Bi-Polar

    Outside my body
    Looking in
    It’s time to alert
    My last of kin

    I’m not myself
    Think I’ve gone crazy
    The last few days
    Have been quite hazy

    What am I thinking?
    Have I gone nuts?
    I’m acting insane
    And I’m dressed like a slut

    My middle finger
    In the air
    I’m drunk by noon
    And i’ve cut my hair

    Couldn’t give a fuck less
    If I get in trouble
    Speed limit’s 30,
    I’m doing double

    Blaring music
    Hysterically screaming
    Everything’s foggy
    I must be dreaming
    Met up with some new friends
    Guess it’s high time to go ghost
    On the people around me
    That care about me the most

    They’ll know exactly
    What this all means
    They’ll try and stop it
    And I’ll cause a scene

    My mom will exclaim
    “Oh, fuck, she’s gone manic!”
    And when you look at her face
    You can see she’s started to panic

    But what everyone here
    Is failing to realize
    Is that a manic episode
    Is like winning the grand prize

    I’m having a great time
    I just quit my job
    I’ve pounded a fifth
    And i’m making kabobs

    I don’t wanna come down
    I don’t wanna stop it
    Won’t take medication
    So you might as well drop it

    So I’m watching my alter
    Destroy all that I’ve built
    She won’t even slow down
    Doesn’t understand guilt

    Give it a week
    And I’ll snap back to reality
    But I’ll be so fucking depressed
    That I’ll crave that mentality

    No one can wake me
    For almost a week
    But when they finally do
    I’m empty and bleak

    I’d rather be mental
    Blissfully crazy
    Than low, sad, or sleepy,
    Vacant and lazy

    It’s no easy task
    Living life with bi-polar
    Cause when she gets on a good one
    Even I can’t control her

    Style Score: 80

    Kendy Bendewald

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  • Martha Moore shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 3 months ago

    Planted Roots

    Deep inside
    You’ve planted roots
    I can feel you taking over
    I am a subject in your kingdom
    You are the king and queen of my whole being
    Darkness that no light can penetrate
    My ruler, my Lord, my curse
    You grow bigger and stronger everyday
    I simply wither away
    Hoping to stand clear of drowning
    There is no place in my mind to feel safe
    To be safe
    I am a haunted house
    Controlled by you
    Never ending reels in my house of horror
    Never forget
    I’m trapped in my past
    I can’t find my way back home

    Martha Moore

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  • Lillith Campos shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 3 months ago

    For Emily

    This was written November 26th, 2020. I had been struggling with the death of a friend; it happened to hit a little too close to home for me. I had a sense of survivor’s guilt. I felt that it should have been, could very easily have been me. It wreaked havoc on my mental state for months, thus my therapist suggested writing this in her memory. I remember it as if it happened yesterday, my therapist being so compassionate but also cautioning me, bracing me, making sure I understood that being a part of this community, Emily will not be the only person I lose to suicide or even murder. We as trans people do not have a long-life expectancy.

    So, we need a little back story. I met Emily in December in a support group on Facebook for depression, anxiety and suicide. She is a transgender woman like myself. She is 25 years old and would have been 26 this month. Her and another transwoman we met in that group bonded rather quickly over not just our suicidal ideations, self-harm and depression, but also from all 3 of us sharing the trials and tribulations of being transgender in this shit hole of a country.

    Her family disowned her for being trans, and very rarely used the correct pronouns. She was kicked out of her home yet was able to find an apartment where she lived in Atlanta. She hated being trans. She was happier on hormones of course but still hated the fact she was not a cis woman. She was in enormous debt from so many medical Bill’s due to numerous suicide attempts and being hospitalized in psych wards. In the 4 months we knew each other she probably spent 5 or 6 weeks in a psych ward. She was of the mind she would fake it until she made it, meaning whatever she had to do to get off suicide watch. She swore once her medical bills were paid off, she would end it. She planned to wait because she did not want to stick the family that disowned her with the medical bills.

    She was always thinking about others and loved to please people. We all became very close in such a short amount of time. When she was in the psych hospital, we would call daily to check on her. She attempted three times in the time I knew her, once with a noose but the rope broke. Twice with pills, the last one resulting in seizures and a hospital stay before another psych stay.

    We had an agreement between the three of us. We knew how depressed we were. We knew we all longed for death, and we hated how people were trying to keep us alive when all we wanted was to die. How could people be so selfish? So, we gave each other permission to die. We would not try to talk each other out of it because we understood each other. We agreed that what we would do was to at least say goodbye to the others in the group. Give the others a chance to say goodbye and that we love each other one last time. That did not happen. Emily left us and we did not get to say goodbye to her.

    I really want to be mad at her for that, but I understand her pain. I understand her fear that we would try and talk her out of it. I am so very sad that I lost her, but I am comforted in the knowledge that she Isn’t suffering anymore. Emily confided in me outside of our group chat a couple of times that one thing that was keeping her going was she did not want others to be sad about her loss. And that she feared Rose (the other one in our group) would kill herself if in fact either one of us did kill ourselves. Rose mentioned as much that she would do that.

    We must do better as humans. Misgendering takes such a toll on us. The things we go through daily wears us down every day, and it seems like this entire country is on a witch hunt with us being the witches (I’m pagan but people just say witches). We are slowly being killed off by mental illness due to the struggles of being transgender. And those struggles, those mental illnesses are caused from outside influences 99 percent of the time.

    We need to talk about this more openly. So many suffer from depression and suicidal ideation. We must remove the stigma from this topic. People have to stop being afraid to talk about it. RIP Emily Nicole Brown. I will miss you.

    Here Is the link to her blog. You will get a better mindset of her thinking. http://www.emilythetransgirl.wordpress.com

    Lillith Raine Campos

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  • PSYCHOLOGY OF PROJECTION

    Dear Unsealed,
    PSYCHOLOGY OF PROJECTION
    The theory of the psychology of projection is a phenomenal viral situation in 2024.
    There are people who project their ill feelings, anger, insecurities onto the closest empath standing in their way.
    You spewed obscenities at me that day
    As you do everyday
    you blame me for your failed attitude
    that is not subdued
    I ask you why
    Why do you project your insecurities onto me
    You reply
    It’s all your fault
    It’s my fault you say
    No, you just caught
    In another lie
    I sigh
    Why?
    You yell at me
    You are nothing to me
    So, let it be
    I cry
    I say
    No
    I could be your fake friend
    Until the end
    So, then you yell
    To me
    Not let it be
    But cruel words of anger
    That makes you a danger
    To my world
    To your world
    To all worlds
    As you carry on
    With your blaming me
    For your misdeeds
    Of unconscious reprimanding me
    Or any other empath
    The victim of your wrath
    You are jealous and angry
    You sit around spewing obscenities
    Of hate and bigotry of amenities
    And talents of other people on Earth
    So, tell me,
    For what it’s worth
    How do you wake up everyday
    To your vile words of insanity
    Of what may be your reality
    To trash the Earth
    With your dark soul
    Of cruel intentions of old
    As your soul was sold
    To the vile fiery hell of hades
    Of your life of death,
    Here what I say.
    Your dark empty vessel of skin
    Can not win
    You are the demon of Earth
    For what it’s worth
    You are not anything
    You are a blank empty soul
    Of nothing
    But your lies
    Your ego
    You cry, you scream
    At me
    Let it be
    You are the epitome of humanity
    Garbage dump
    Dump Dump

    Vicki Lawana Trusselli

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    • Vicki, I’ve never given much thought to the psychology of projection, but I can see how feelings projected onto an empathetic person would be detrimental to his or her well-being. When people with darkness inside them feel the need to bring down those who would do them no harm, it really shows their true nature. I hope that, as an empath, you can…read more

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  • Personal Bodyguards

    When I see a tiny lizard or a gecko on the sidewalk, I see you & smell the softness of pancakes cooking in the kitchen.

    When I see a black cat, I see you & instantly smell gingerbread cookies baking in the oven around Christmas time.

    When I see a white Chevy truck, I see two young girls sitting in the bed of the truck embracing the moment of the wind blowing amongst their tiny faces after a fun filled day in the snow

    When I see elder men wearing their “Veterans” hat, I see you standing before me. I feel the softness in the air. I see the gentleness of your soul standing amongst the crowd. I thank that individual for their service as I walk away.

    When I see the color purple out in the world, I see you. When I’m at work & hear similar words from my clients, I think of you standing before me. When I see the card game “Go Fish” being played, I see two younger girls sitting at their grandmother’s table laughing til their tummy hurts.

    When I see a yellow tractor, I see a young adult enjoying the time being spent with their grandfather. When I see a blue truck, I see you & start singing those old country songs we’d sing together.

    No matter where I go in life, I see you.
    I see all of you!
    Wherever I go, you are right there guiding the way. The way to clarity. To beautiful blessings. To happiness. To calmness. To love.

    No matter the length of missing you, the memories, all of the memories will forever be shared.
    Wherever I go in life, I know I have several bodyguards guiding me along my path. Protecting me.

    Heather

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    • Heather, this piece makes my heart smile. We all have little ways of remembering those we lost in our day-to-day lives, and it brings us so much comfort. Whenever I see a butterfly hover near me, I feel like my aunt is giving me a hug. When I see a red bird, I feel comforted by my granny’s presence even though she’s been gone for years. Our…read more

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  • Heather shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 3 months, 1 weeks ago

    Dear Anxiety

    Hold my hand. Gently grab these fingers and walk with me.
    I have something to share with you.
    Let’s go for a walk.

    I know it’s in your nature to save me. To protect me.
    I’m here to let you know, it’s okay.
    I understand your job, but right now, your job is on hold.
    I’ve got this now.
    It’s time for you to take a break.

    I know it’ll be hard for you to come to terms with it, but I’m okay.
    I’m safe now. I’ve found the middle ground.
    You don’t need to cover me with your comfort shield.
    I’ve got this. I promise.

    You can go lay down and rest.
    Shut your eyes.
    Silence the noise.
    Relax.

    Sincerely,
    Me

    Heather

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    • Heather, I also suffer from anxiety and I can relate to what you wrote so much. Though our anxiety serves a purpose- to keep us safe and prepared- it also prevents us from finding joy in the uncertainties of life. Like you, I hope to find a middle ground that allows me to relax and enjoy my life while still being cognizant of what goes on around…read more

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  • Anita Williams shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 3 months, 3 weeks ago

    A Letter of Healing, Strength, and Spiritual Alignment

    Life has a way of forcing you into stillness. When everything around you crumbles, when the weight of the world feels unbearable, when you’ve given all of yourself and still feel empty—you are left with two choices: break, or rebuild.

    I won’t lie. There were moments I felt like breaking.

    I have battled PTSD, bipolar disorder, mood swings, and depression. Some days, I could barely pull myself out of bed. Some days, I felt like I was drowning in emotions I didn’t have the strength to explain. And yet, the world kept moving. Responsibilities didn’t stop, expectations didn’t pause, and people still pulled from me, unaware that I was running on nothing.

    Last year tested me in ways I never imagined. I ended a relationship I deeply wanted. One I poured my soul into. And it broke me. Not just the loss, but the realization that I had given so much of myself, yet I was never truly seen, never truly valued. I walked away with nothing but exhaustion, drained of my love, my energy, and my spirit. And then, life didn’t give me time to heal. The weight of being out of work, the unexpected surgery, the long recovery, the piling responsibilities—it all came at once. I thought I could handle it. I thought I could push through, but when my body failed me, when I could no longer do the things I once did effortlessly, I had no choice but to sit in it. To feel everything I had been running from.

    Preparing for my son’s graduation should have been a moment of excitement, a moment of celebration, but instead, I found myself withdrawing. I just wanted to be alone. I couldn’t explain it, but I didn’t want to be around people. That’s when I knew—I had to go back to therapy. I had to see my psychiatrist, get back on my medication, and take control of my mental health again. Because no matter how much I prayed, I had to also take action. Healing isn’t just spiritual—it’s mental, emotional, and physical.

    And then this year, the surgery happened. I thought it would be simple. Something I could bounce back from quickly. But this surgery was nothing like I expected. It forced me into yet another level of surrender, another layer of patience, another reminder that healing has no shortcuts. I cry a lot. I get emotional, and sometimes it feels like the world is changing too fast, yet somehow, it also feels like we’re moving backward. There’s so much hate, so much anger, so much division. And as I get older, I realize that time moves whether we are ready or not. I used to picture myself in a different place by now. I thought I’d be married, settled, moving in a rhythm that felt secure. Instead, I find myself constantly adjusting, constantly learning, constantly relearning how to exist in this world.

    And January—it never gets easier. In 2020, I lost my father. In December 2021, I lost my child. That kind of pain never truly leaves. It lingers. It shifts. Some days, it’s a whisper. Some days, it’s a storm. I wanted that baby so bad. So bad. And sometimes, that grief still knocks the air out of me. No matter how much time passes, I still feel the loss. I still cry. And I still ask God why. But through it all, my faith remains my anchor.

    I am deeply spiritual. I trust in the Most High. I believe in the power of prayer, in the power of divine alignment. Not a day goes by that I don’t pray. I pray through my pain, through my uncertainty, through my grief. I light my candles. I speak to my ancestors. I trust that even in my hardest moments, I am never truly alone. And my advice to anyone experiencing something similar—love yourself first, pour into you, work on your healing, seek therapy, sit with your emotions, stop running. Search spiritually for God, pray, meditate, trust in divine timing. Don’t let your situation break your spirit. You are stronger than you feel in this moment. Always take a break for your mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health. You cannot pour from an empty cup. Love will always come. You won’t have to chase it. You won’t have to question it. When it’s meant for you, it will align effortlessly. And above all, life is short—so enjoy it. Live. Love. Heal. Breathe. Be present.

    I am still learning, still healing, still growing. But what I know for sure is this: I will not break. I will rise. I will love again. But this time, from a place of wholeness. And when the time is right, when my spirit is aligned, when my heart is open and whole—love will find me. Not through force. Not through desperation. But through divine alignment.

    Anita A Williams

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    • Anita, you are such an inspiration. Your story is raw and real and I love that you don’t try to sugarcoat what you’ve experienced. Based on what you’ve written, you certainly have had more than enough reason to break. The fact that you are choosing to rebuild instead says so much about your strength and courage. Thank you for sharing your…read more

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  • Paige Walden shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 3 months, 3 weeks ago

    Angel on Fire

    In the river of time, we drift and glide on life’s current, side by side.
    We flow together, bound by routines and survival’s embrace, with some finding solace in their pace and others who bear burdens, heavy and wide.
    Yet despite our different paths, the goal for all remains unchanged, to stay afloat and abide.

    We journey on this temporal stream, experiencing moments both shared and a dream.

    For me, floating adrift for nearly three decades, it was in my recent path that I set myself ablaze,
    consumed by flames of renewal, a heart reborn. In time’s river, I’ll continue to soar.

    In the scorch, I let myself burn, shedding the old, bitter me that yearned to extinguish God’s goodness within.
    Anger and resentment threatened to consume,
    plunging me into dark, endless gloom.
    Yet, like a phoenix, I rose anew, enlightened, with self-awareness shining through.
    From the ashes, l emerged, reborn and free,
    snuffing out the flames that once consumed me.

    As I rise, the future’s dawn, In 2025, a new path drawn.
    No longer bound by insecure ties, the past’s weight, I bid goodbye.
    Goodbye to burdens heavy shadows, threatening to cave in on me,
    goodbye to the whispers of names and flawed reflections;
    I’ll let the flames of courage soar, And watch the past, forevermore.

    With gasoline, I’ll set it free,
    from chain of doubt I’ll break with glee.
    A resolution blazes, fierce and true,
    In the horizon’s arms, I’ll soar anew.
    From the ashes, I rise, wings spread wide,
    embracing the sky, my spirit twirled.
    Let it all burn, in the night’s embrace,
    I’ll find my freedom, in this vast space.

    Paige Walden

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    • Paige, I absolutely love this poem! I love the idea of “burning” your past self so that you can find yourself in the present. By cutting the cords that bind us, we can embrace who we really are. I hope that you are able to find the freedom that you desire. Thank you for sharing this inspiring poem!

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      • This one personally is my favorite piece I ever wrote. Thank you so much for your words! I’m really glad I can share this and have it resonate with you and hopefully more! ❤️

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  • Sam Harty shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 4 months ago

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    Secret Suicide Note

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  • Noirerequiem shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 4 months ago

    Darkside of Suicide

    I see you.
    Not just the you they pretend to notice,
    but the you that lingers in shadows,
    weighed down by whispers that won’t hush.
    The you that wonders if silence
    is the only way to be heard.

    I won’t lie to you—
    this pain ain’t easy to carry.
    It seeps into your bones,
    fills your lungs with the weight of nights
    that stretch too long, too heavy,
    too empty.

    I know the darkside.
    The way it calls your name like a lullaby,
    promising rest where the world
    only offers war.
    I know how it feels
    when the walls close in,
    when every breath feels borrowed,
    when hope is a language
    you forgot how to speak.

    But listen to me.

    There are others who walked this road,
    stumbled, fell, but still found their way.
    Not because the weight vanished,
    but because they learned—
    somehow, some way—
    to shift it,
    to share it,
    to bear it just one more day.

    So if tonight feels like the last chapter,
    I beg you—
    turn the page.

    Because the story ain’t done.
    And neither are you.

    AmbitiousBMarie

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    • les replied 4 months ago

      This is beautifully written. Your words have strong visibility in them that grasped me from beginning to end!. Especially important with this topic and wanting people to know their story doesn’t have to be done.

      Very good job!

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    • Marie, this poem is so powerful! I love that you took the time to write this for those who are struggling. You are so right that sometimes simply turning the page can bring a new light to the situation. Even when it feels like the end, the story is not finished! Thank you for encouraging those around you with your words. You’ve inspired me today!

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    • “Story ain’t done and neither are you” that is beautiful thank you for writing this.

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  • everything andnothing shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 4 months ago

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    Shipwrecked

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  • Grief is a Kingdom

    Grief is a kingdom you never ask to rule.
    A place with no stars, no dawn to break.
    Endless night.
    A place where echoes live longer than voices,
    where shadows wear the faces you’ve lost—
    but never quite get them right.

    It crowns you in silence,
    wraps its cloak around your ribs,
    tightens until your breath comes in fractured whispers.

    I thought I was ready.
    I told myself time was mercy—
    that knowing would soften the blow.
    But grief doesn’t strike like lightning.
    It seeps in slowly, like poison in your veins,
    until one day you’re gasping,
    and you don’t even remember what air felt like.

    I try to remember her laugh—
    but it’s like chasing smoke.
    Somewhere in my mind,
    her smile is fading at the edges.
    Her voice, just a ghost of a ghost.

    I keep pictures tucked away in drawers.
    I can’t look at them for too long.
    Each glance is a wound,
    each memory a blade turning slow beneath my ribs.
    But without them, she slips further from me.
    I am caught between needing to remember
    and not being able to survive it.

    How cruel it is—
    to lose her twice.
    Once to death, and again to time.

    My son was born after she left.
    A few fractured weeks between his first breath
    and the silence she became.
    His due date was her birthday.
    As if the universe thought irony was a kindness.

    Since I was 18,
    I have been carving out a life with trembling hands,
    mistaking silence for strength,
    mistaking independence for survival.
    But I was wrong.

    Strength is standing in the ruin
    and naming every piece.
    It is saying:
    This hurt.
    This still hurts.
    It is learning to breathe in the dark.

    They don’t tell you how grief is a thief—
    how it steals the good with the bad.
    How every sweet memory is chased by regret.
    How every second of love feels borrowed.
    How guilt hangs on your shoulders like a cloak
    you can’t remove.

    I should have stayed longer.
    I should have loved louder.
    I should have grown up faster,
    instead of pretending I had all the time in the world.

    I still don’t know how to carry this.
    Most days, I bury it beneath busy hands and silence.
    But it always finds me—
    in the quiet, in the stillness,
    in the moments when her name rises to my lips
    but never makes it past my teeth.

    Grief is a kingdom,
    and I am its prisoner.
    There are no windows, no keys, no doors.
    Only the ghosts of what could have been
    and the weight of everything I didn’t say.

    And yet somehow,
    even in this shadowland,
    I am still searching for light.

    Taisha Bracero Sierra

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    • Taisha, this poem makes my heart ache for you. Grief over losing someone you love never truly goes away, it just lessens with time. My favorite stanza is “How cruel it is—to lose her twice. Once to death, and again to time.” As time passes, our memories fade whether we want them to or not. I hope that you continue searching for light and FIND i…read more

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      • Thank you for your kind words. Grief once felt like an open wound—raw, unbearable, and impossible to ignore. But time, though indifferent, has stitched it into a scar. I used to fear it, afraid that showing it meant reopening the pain. But now, I see it as proof of love, of survival, of a bond that even time cannot erase. I carry it not as a m…read more

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    • Wow. I can not even begin to tell you how beautiful and moving this is.

      My deepest condolences for the loss you endured.

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  • Sara Johnson shared a letter in the Group logo of Remembering those we lost/GriefRemembering those we lost/Grief group 4 months, 1 weeks ago

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    Frozen In Time

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  • Mari Morales shared a letter in the Group logo of Remembering those we lost/GriefRemembering those we lost/Grief group 4 months, 2 weeks ago

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    See you later Dad

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  • everything andnothing shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 4 months, 2 weeks ago

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    Predestined for Stability

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  • So soon

    So last year my mom was diagnosed with AML and immediately our lives changed instantly, we quit looking at 6 months from now and were thankful for the moment, we still planned ahead but new anything could happen, well Thanksgiving came and noticed my mom wasn’t acting like MY MOM, we had planned a Special Thanksgiving with homemade egg rolls and she was sleeping a lot, well we were praying and Trusting God and on Dec 15th we would take her to the hospital.The doctor told us her instines were twisted and asked if the cancer was being treated our hearts sank, We were planning on spending Christmas with my mom, but the 17th of December I had to sign a DNC for my mom, Everyday I spent with my mom was short.Dec 22nd she would pass away.I spend Christmas eve getting her grave site ready, Im STUNNED at what happened.We now cherish EVERY DAY and WILL MAKE HER PROUD.

    Leroy. Bragg.

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    • Leroy, this breaks my heart for you. To lose your mother is hard enough already, but now I know that Christmas will always leave you with memories of that time. I hope that you can find comfort in knowing that your mother no longer feels pain. I’m sure that she is so proud of you and continues to love you fiercely. Thank you for sharing.

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