Let me pipe up real quick.

This one's inspired by one of my YouTube videos.

They always wanna talk about being humble— but ain’t nobody ever say nothin’ when you were humble and hurt. When you were quiet and crushed. When you were low and loyal to folks who only loved the version of you that didn’t speak up.

You ever notice that?

The minute you start walking like you know who you are, the minute you start healing with your chest out, folks start actin’ like you switched up.

Nah. I didn’t switch up. I just stopped showin’ up to places that only fed my insecurities. I just stopped beggin’ people to see what was never hidden.

I’m not cocky. I’m just no longer available for disrespect.

You see, there’s a version of me I buried to make others comfortable. To not be “too much.” To keep the peace. To avoid being “that guy.”

But guess what? That guy had boundaries. That guy had dreams. That guy wanted to be seen without having to bleed to prove his worth.

And I finally let him out.

So yeah, maybe I am louder now. Maybe I love myself a little more out loud. Maybe I don’t flinch anymore when people leave. ‘Cause if your love is conditional, I’d rather sit alone with my dignity than surround myself with applause that disappears the moment I slip.

Look— you could move a mountain in front of some people and they’d still ask why you didn’t do it faster. You could give ‘em the last piece of your soul, and they’d still say, “That’s all?”

So fuck ‘em.

And I don’t say that with hate in my heart. I say that with peace in my chest. Because some people don’t deserve a seat at your table when all they ever brought was appetite and opinions.

You are not selfish for protecting your space. You are not mean for being unavailable to energy that drains you. You are not broken just because you’re not performing pain in the way they understand.

Some of the most “put-together” people you know are barely holding it together. And some of the loudest folks in the room are just scared of what’ll echo if they sit with their silence.

But you? You’re learning to speak from the scar instead of the wound. You’re learning to set the tone, not just survive the noise. You’re learning to build a life you don’t need a vacation from.

And that might confuse people who only know how to bond over trauma. That might bother folks who only respected you when you were suffering.

But I promise you— there is a freedom in no longer performing your struggle for spectators. There is a power in being unbothered by people who never knew what it cost to become this version of you.

They don’t know the nights you cried in silence. They don’t know the prayers you whispered with your head low and your hands shaking. They don’t know how many times you almost quit— not life, just living.

And yet here you are. Breathing. Healing. Choosing joy even when it feels foreign.

So yeah— maybe you’re not where you wanna be yet. But you’re further than you were. And that’s enough for today.

You ain't here to be perfect. You're here to be real. You're here to be whole. You're here to be you, loudly, honestly, and unapologetically.

If they don’t get it? Let ‘em go. If they don’t clap? Clap for your damn self. If they don’t love you? Then love yourself so loud they hear the echo every time they doubt you.

And if you ever feel like it’s too much to carry— just know, I got you. This space right here? This little world we built? This ain’t just content. This is a confession. This is survival. This is home for folks who ain’t had one in a while.

Remember, we all carry something. But here, you don’t have to carry it alone. Pipe Up.

Loving yourself sometimes looks like journaling. If that sounds like something you'd like to do, you can download our free 7 day reflection journal.

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