Some darkness isn’t mystical
it’s human.
It’s the choice to be cruel,
to twist what’s true,
to say the cutting thing
and call it “honesty.”
I’ve learned not to romanticize it,
and not to argue with it.
Instead, I keep a steady flame:
discernment,
boundaries,
and the quiet courage
to stay kind without staying open
to harm.
I don’t have to shout to be strong.
I don’t have to harden to be safe.
A steady flame is enough.
It lights the way.
It warms what deserves warming.
And it refuses
to be blown out.