I used to wish I had more.
More love. More attention. More presence.
But over time, I realized that the space left empty by others wasn’t empty after all.
It was mine—and it taught me everything.
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They didn’t show up.
Not in the ways I hoped. Not in the ways I needed.
But their absence gave me space.
Space to become clever.
To hold silence like an heirloom.
To hear everything no one said out loud.
When no one hovered, I learned to breathe freely.
When no one guided, I became my own compass.
When no one praised me, I learned how to clap quietly for myself — and mean it.
They thought they were withholding love.
What they gave me instead was solitude, intuition,
and a thousand uninterrupted afternoons
to become someone they couldn’t imagine.
I am not grateful for the pain.
But I honor the clarity it carved.
Some grow up in gardens.
I grew up in wild soil —
but I still bloomed.
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the quietest rooms
taught me how to hold myself
without apology
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I’m not saying neglect is a gift.
I’m saying I used mine like soil.
And maybe that’s the most radical thing you can do—
grow anyway.