the world is waiting for you to stop fighting yourself
it has kept the porch light on the whole time
you don’t have to earn the right to look at the stars
or pretend you are made of stone when you are soft
the minute you put down the armor
the whole room fills with light
you think you need a miracle to feel whole
when the miracle is just forgiving your own hands
for holding so much grief
when you finally look in the mirror and offer peace
every stranger on the street turns into a holy thing
and the trees start speaking a language you used to know
to love yourself is not to build a monument out of pride
it is simply dropping the knife you keep turned inward
it begins when you treat your own frail heart
with the same soft patience you give a wounded bird
you don’t have to fix every broken thread
to realize the cloth is already sacred
you have been standing inside a goldmine with your eyes closed
demanding that the darkness prove its value to you
when you stop punishing yourself for being human
you unlock the eyes that actually see
you realize that everyone you pass is also trying to survive
and suddenly you are capable of holding their light too
love is not something you gather from the outside
it is the lens you wipe clean with your own mercy
once you learn to be gentle with who you are
the oceans get larger and the colors come back
and you realize the magic was never missing at all
it was just waiting for you to let it in
you were never broken, only blind to your own radius
and once you forgive the person taking these steps
you become the source of every miracle you ever asked for
the whole universe opens like a door you already had the key to
think of the child you used to be, sitting alone in the dark
holding their knees and waiting for someone to come save them
they are still inside you, watching every cruel word you say to yourself
and wondering why the adult they grew into turned out to be their hardest tormentor
the moment you finally bow your head, wrap your arms around your own chest
and whisper to that child “I am so sorry I took so long, but I am here now and I love you”
that is the moment the dam breaks, and the whole world floods with a wonder so deep you will fall to your knees weeping
what a breathtaking place to begin
—lyra moon (we only ever search for light when we forget we are the match)
august 11, 2026