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“We can’t always see a person’s capacity for evil. But that doesn’t make us culpable. It just means we see the good in those around us.”
“But we can’t let one bad experience sour the rest of our lives. We can’t let the bad win. Make us stop living. If we lock ourselves down, we don’t just keep out the bad. We keep out the good, too.”
“Because everything about you screams that you’ve been fighting alone for too damn long, Thorn. You need someone to help carry the weight for a little while. I might not be able to fix everything, but I can help carry the load.”
“Alone isn’t a place. It’s a state of being. And no one can stay that way forever. Every person on this planet needs others. Needs to share their burdens with someone.”
“And they bring the hummingbirds.” Shep’s focus moved back to me as he took in my statement. “You’ve got lots of feeders, too.” I nodded. “There’s something about them. It’s more than their beauty. They’re tiny but fierce. And they’re deft escape artists.”
“We all do what we have to do to make it through. I’m never going to judge you for what you need to feel safe.”
“You’re worthy, Shepard Colson. You don’t have to fix anything to be that. You don’t have to dig a million trenches or replace feet of corroded piping. You’re worthy just for who you are.”
Facts over feelings. Feelings were always justified, but we had to put them into the framework of facts.
“People fool us. We think they’re one thing when they’re really another. It doesn’t say anything about us; it says something about them.”
“We all carry with us the weight of our experiences. The hard things change us. Sometimes, they scar us. But it’s never all bad. They grow our empathy, understanding, and the way we care for others around us.
Because whatever we build, it’s always better when both our hands are in it.”
“Your heart is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever experienced. Beautiful because it’s been broken. Those cracks let it become something else entirely. Stronger. Wiser. The fiercest defender of anyone who needs it. And the gentlest confidante for anyone who needs understanding. You see it all. And you don’t look away. You come alongside without judgment, and you simply love. You can’t ask me to walk away from that after I’ve experienced it. It would be like living in the sun, only to exist entirely in darkness.”
I’ve never really known what it’s like to feel completely safe. Not until I met you. It’s more than the physical safety. It’s feeling safe to be who I truly am. No pretenses. No fear of judgment.”
