the lessons i’ve learned

I spent years doing the things I thought I had to do
Checked all the boxes
Got the degrees
Found someone that loved me
And yet there I was, utterly unhappy.
If you’ve ever woken up to realize that your unhappiness
was your own damn fault
That you could have saved yourself years before
by just saying fuck those boxes.
Check “other” and fill it in with
find your passion
get to know yourself
learn how to communicate
seek joy.
Then maybe you would have saved yourself from
heartache.
But mistakes happen
and hindsight is 20/20
and I refuse to look forward with anything but
clarity
about who I am
what I want
and the lessons I’ve learned.

-O.G.