I know I’m strong—and I’m grateful for that strength—but there are days when I simply wish for a moment of ease. Sometimes strength feels like both a blessing and a responsibility, a quiet understanding that I’ll show up and carry what needs carrying. And while I’m thankful for the resilience I’ve built, there are moments when I just want to rest and breathe without having to hold everything together.

I don’t always want to be the one who is unshakeable. I’d love to have space to just be soft, to let someone else guide, to lean for a while instead of always being leaned on. There is something beautiful in vulnerability, in being held with care, and I’m learning that allowing myself to rest doesn’t diminish any part of my strength—it completes it.

From the very beginning, I learned how to stand tall. I learned how to be capable. And I’ve done well with that—truly. But even so, I’m beginning to welcome the idea that it’s okay to want gentleness and support in return. It’s okay to desire reciprocity and to acknowledge that I don’t have to carry everything alone.

I am grateful for the journey that shaped me. I’m proud of how far I’ve come. And I’m learning—slowly, lovingly—that I deserve the same steadiness, devotion, and care that I offer so freely. I deserve to rest. I deserve to be met. I deserve to be soft.