The denim dug into my waist before I even tried to hold my breath.I yanked, pulled, tried to force the button shut, and gave up when the fabric fought back. The mirror didn’t soften the blow. On the wall, the calendar showed five neat little boxes of planned workouts. Every single one left blank. On paper, I looked disciplined. In reality, nothing had moved. The Loop I Know Too Well That’s been the cycle. I sketch out plans with the energy of a fresh start, feel the buzz of knowing exactly what I’ll do next, and then watch it …
The Rare Currency
Most people listen like they’re waiting in line,Nodding on cue, missing the spine.Noise dressed as talk, polished but hollow,Egos so loud they drown what they swallow. But then—once in a while—a voice lands clean,Cuts through the fluff, sharp, unseen.Not performance, not polish, no need to impress,Just presence that lingers, saying far more with less. Protect that gold, it doesn’t come cheap,One true exchange outvalues a heap.Talk is for many, connection for few—Spend it like treasure, on those who see you. …
The Taste of Real Words
The mug was warm, but the coffee was cold,we traded safe stories already old.Weather and traffic, the headlines, the queue—a thousand words spoken, but nothing felt true. Two nights before, on your rain-slicked porch,tea steam rising like a slow-lit torch,you leaned back easy, rain damp in your hair,and said, “I don’t like who I am at work, I swear.” The night went still—like it held its breath,your words cut clean, like a truth or a death.No filters, no frosting, no lines to rehearse—just honesty raw, both blessing and curse. We spoke …
When You Hear Me
Most speak to fill the air,but you… you leave the silence there.You let my words find their own ground,and in your eyes, I feel unbound. It’s not the phrases that we trade,but how the walls between us fade.No need for masks, no need for show,your listening tells me you already know. In a world that shouts to be believed,you hear the truths I’ve never grieved.And in that space, so calm, so wide,I find my voice. I find my guide. …
The Currency of Discomfort – Lessons from Take It Outside
Some stories stay on the page. This one seeps into your bloodstream.Elise Rose Richmond’s Take It Outside isn’t polished inspiration or a highlight reel—it’s raw, unfiltered proof that a life well-lived often looks messy up close. She moves through her adventures like a washing machine of emotions—spinning through fear, awe, fatigue, and elation, often in the same afternoon. No vocabulary feels big enough to hold what she describes, but she manages to let you feel it: the blisters, the bone-deep cold, the split-second decisions between …
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Stop Letting Yourself Off the Hook
If there’s one thing I’ve perfected, it’s the art of the excuse. I could write a book about the clever detours I’ve invented to sidestep my own plans. The thing is, after a while, those little “not todays” don’t sound clever at all. They’re just heavy. They pile up, get dusty, and start to crowd out the part of me that actually wants more from life. No one ever warned me how sneaky excuses could be. They slip in quietly, wearing the mask of logic and self-care, telling me I’ll be ready tomorrow, or that I deserve a break, or that someone …