Kayjah,
I’m sorry for taking so long to reply- thank you for reading my poem; I’m so touched that you liked it and the support you offered in return! Your kind wishes and encouragement are very much appreciated! Thank you for believing in me Kayjah, I believe in you as well <3

Hi Lauren,
Thanks for taking the time to read and respond to my poem! Your feedback means a lot and brings a smile to my face, I hope putting myself out there can have some positive impact for people <3 YOU are joy as well, thank you for making this platform for me to express myself and inspiring me to share my truths beyond my personal diary/journaling. Finding out that this poem was published in the book this week has been a highlight of my year, so it almost came full circle aha. It’s been a dream to get involved with poetry and I’m so grateful to have found this community. I’m also beyond excited about the book and I wanted to congratulate you on making that happen for this community and thank you for doing the work you’ve done- I know it has been so meaningful to me and I hope others in the community have been with me on cloud 9 since learning about the book being published! You are truly an inspiration and thank you for helping me chase after my dreams! <3 Taylor/tealy

Lauren, thank you so much for the kind words and support! I hope that you’re finding some benefits with stopping caffeine and kudos on giving that up- it’s not easy to break habits but it’s very interesting to notice how significant gut health is in general (I worked for a wellness doctor who was very adamant on our guts being our second brain so, he emphasized significance of nutrition and supplements- specifically fish oil and polyphenols aha). Again, I hope your symptoms are improving without caffeine! That expression about the map of Ireland in relation to freckles is like a core memory from my childhood so, I really appreciated this community/prompt that brought me back to those fond memories. Thank you for supporting my journey in self-love, I want to send the same loving kindness toward you and just express my gratitude for what you’ve done in creating this community. I apologize for the delay in getting back to you, (maybe tmi but I have been inspired by all that this community/family offers and am saving for a laptop to make it easier to engage with the community; so, I hope to have that soon and really look forward to being more involved on here). Thank you again for all that you do Lauren, it truly means so much to me!