If I seem calm, it’s not because nothing moves me. It’s because I’ve lived through too many moments where peace turned into something else before I could hold onto it.

Joy has always arrived with a catch. I learned to keep one eye open, even when everything looked safe.

It’s not that I don’t feel deeply. It’s that I’ve trained myself to scan for the shift – the breath before the storm, the silence before the sting.

Being careful with joy doesn’t mean I don’t deserve it. It means I’ve earned the right to protect it, even from the parts of me still learning it won’t be taken away this time.