The heart is a fragile thing,  
Only able to hold so much.  
Like a ship  
Sailing through a storm.  
Some make it through.  
Others, water fills the hull.  
  
Wave after wave,  
Try as you might.
You must stay afloat
The best way you can.  
No matter how many patches,  
Water still leaks in.  
Just like a heart,  
Pumping, but weighed down.
You must keep going.  
Take the proper precautions,
Jump overboard,
Swim if you must,  
No matter how many lies  
Have poked and prodded  
At your heart.  
No matter how many holes  
Have pierced your soul.  
Don’t drown.  
As long as you keep kicking,  
The sun will always shine.
Not all beautiful locations are
charted on a map

I have traversed untamed landscapes,
Where each step became a dialogue with the earth—
A delicate negotiation of trust and healing.
Roots intertwined with silent, profound stories,
Grounding me in resilience,
Stories of my ****** assault are now embedded in the soil.

Rocks stood silent, bearing witness to the relentless bullying and gaslighting.
Their stillness echoed the weight of those memories and the growth that followed—
Unyielding yet steady, much like the strength I built with every step.

In this journey, I grappled with self-discovery,
Navigating the boundaries of my being,
Especially as an autistic soul in a world that often misunderstood me.
Each struggle revealed new layers of my identity,
As I sought to understand my place amidst the noise.

The weight of expectations felt heavy,
But I learned to carve out spaces where I could breathe.
My peace was no gentle stream;
It was a summit earned through struggle—
Vast, unyielding, and hard-won.

As I ascended this demanding peak,
The view stretched far beyond the horizon,
Revealing landscapes of healing,
Belonging to all who had climbed beside me.
From this vantage point, I saw how our journeys intersected,
Each of us is a testament to perseverance.

I welcomed others not for comfort,
But for their courage,
Those willing to face the rough terrain,
Understanding that climbing meant shouldering the weight
And sharing breaths.

Belonging was not a destination;
It was a connection—a living, breathing understanding.
Our paths twisted and turned,
Yet they ran parallel, rooted in the same soil
Of shared struggle and triumph.

What I learned was this:
We do not belong by walking the same path,
But by the act of walking itself.
By moving, by simply being,
We claimed our place in the world.

Once, I sought familiar steps but found only uncharted terrain.
Now, every trail I walk becomes a bridge to cross.
And with each step, the earth beneath me whispers:
I am not alone.

I have learned that much of the pain in our world stems from a system that teaches men to disconnect from their emotions. I am beginning to understand that this conditioning, rooted in patriarchy, compels men to equate strength with emotional suppression and dominance, while vulnerability is seen as weakness. As I reflect on this, I see how it harms not just men, but everyone around them, distorting relationships and stifling love.

I am realizing that true liberation, for both men and women, requires breaking free from these destructive patterns. It is not enough to simply reject patriarchy on an intellectual level; I must also recognize the emotional toll it takes on men, who are conditioned to shut down their feelings and distance themselves from empathy. I have come to see that without emotional openness, without the freedom to feel and express tenderness, men remain trapped, unable to experience love in its fullness.

I have learned that healing requires more than dismantling external structures; it calls for a radical rethinking of masculinity. I am now convinced that men must be encouraged to embrace emotional vulnerability, to reconnect with their capacity for love and empathy. I understand that love, in its most profound sense, is transformative, and that it thrives when we allow ourselves to be open, honest, and unafraid of intimacy.

In this process of unlearning, I am reminded that the path to healing is not solitary. I have realized the importance of creating spaces where men can safely explore their emotions, where they can reconnect with the parts of themselves they have been taught to hide. I am committed to fostering communities that prioritize emotional growth and reject the outdated notions of control and dominance that have long defined masculinity.

I have come to believe that change is not only possible but necessary. It requires me, and all of us, to embrace new ways of being that honor emotional expression and nurture the kind of love that allows us to grow. I am committed to this journey, knowing that it holds the potential to reshape our world into one where love, justice, and connection can flourish.

—

In a world where men must not reveal
the wounds that fester deep inside,
I see now, to heal, we must unseal
the softness that we’ve been denied.

The path is not for men to dominate,
but to embrace what makes us whole;
to find the grace in open hands,
and free us from our guarded souls.

In this, I trust, there is a way
where justice, love, and truth align.
Through courage, we can clear the way
and let our hearts entwine.

— Sincerely, Boris

I am aware of the voices
Aware of the choices
That led to these scars
Each one is beautiful
Each one is dark
Each one tells a story
Of how they left their mark
Some are from anger
Some are from pain
Some of these scars even have a name
I remember how they cut me
How I felt ashamed
In a moment of weakness
I’d play a little game
Sink the blade deeper
Grit me teeth through the pain
Each one of these scars
Tells a story
No two are the same

We are all beat up and broken down
Our hearts are like broken glass
Bruised and bloodied knocked upon the ground
We are lost like a man with no compass
We are small and frail and weak
The image is twisted by sin and shame
But in the void, the silence will speak
And the one who loves will call our name
The King of Kings and Lord of Lords
Prince of Peace the Lion and the Lamb
His death brought us from chaos to one accord
He is eternal and He is the Great I AM
He was broken for us
He was pierced for love
He was crushed for our sins
Obedient to the Father above
This is where the healing begins
His body is broken and his blood poured out
He calls us to faith even when we doubt
By giving himself, he makes us whole
He enters in and restores our soul
There is a longing this world can't satisfy
There isn't a thing that we won't try
But we are left hungry and unfulfilled
But with God, we find radical love and fears are stilled
We may be broken, but let us be broken together
Clinging to Jesus in the storms and bad weather
For he heals the broken hearted and brings joy to the sad
He binds the wounded and brings the lost back to the field
He is the Divine Physician He is the Balm of Gilead
So, turn to the Lord and be not broken, but be healed

Lord, we are broken people, and we need you in our lives. All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put us back together again, but you can Lord. Only say the word and our souls will be healed. You are perfect and we, most definitely, are not. We are broken, but we are not broken alone. You were broken for us so that we might be made whole with you. We die with you so we may, one day, rise with you to new and glorious eternal life. Heal us Lord. Heal our streets and lands, heal us Lord by the working of your hands. Hear our cries and come swiftly to our aid. You, Oh Lord, are our refuge and our strength. Break us, bless us, multiply us and perfect us. All this we pray, in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen