The Things We Hide to Survive
Have you ever told someone a lie because you didn’t want to deal with how they’d react to the truth?
I did. Recently. I told someone a version of the truth that was easier for both of us to live with. The reality was, they were right. They almost caught me, too. But I convinced myself I played it off well enough to move past it.
The truth was something I had to handle alone. After how I was treated about the possibility of it, I already knew that if it happened, I couldn’t trust them to show up. It would’ve been foolish of me to lean on someone who made me feel unsafe in my most vulnerable moment.
Dealing with the aftermath alone was draining: physically, emotionally, spiritually. There were nights I genuinely didn’t know how I would keep going. But somehow, I did. I handled it, quietly and completely, with no one’s support but my own.
Now, when I look back at everything that’s happened in the last few months, I shiver, not just from pain, but from the realization of how strong I actually am. I survived it all: the lies, the silence, the loss. I learned that self-trust is the only kind that can’t be broken.
I’m proud of that. I’m proud that even surrounded by people who choose deceit over honesty, I still chose authenticity. I’ll use that strength to keep moving forward… doing what’s right, even when others refuse to be real.
Because truth, no matter how painful, is still freedom.