Breathe With Me (Playing For Keeps #5)

by Becka Mack

And when I’m sitting in a restaurant two hours later, surrounded by my mom and brothers, I can’t help but think that, sometimes, the family you choose shows up for you more than the family you’re born into.

I will love every version of her, always. Her soul will always be hers, and it’ll always be tied to mine. I’m sure of it.

“Because that’s what true friends do. That’s what healthy, safe relationships look like. Showing up in whatever capacity you can without fear that you’ll be punished for it, because at the end of the day, your relationship is rooted in empathy, respect, and love.”

“The only peace goodbye has ever brought me is the certainty that there is so, so much love between that first hello and the final farewell. If only it made the word any easier to say.”

“I wonder what it’s like to have parents you can rely on, not just to take care of you and keep you safe, but to love you, too, through all your stages. I wonder how my life would’ve been different if I’d had that.

Maybe happiness is understanding I’ll never be the same person I was before, thanking her for everything she did for me, saying goodbye, and welcoming the woman I was always meant to be.

“Love isn’t easy. It’s cracking yourself wide open when you’re terrified to do so, just so someone can know the deepest, darkest parts of you. It’s recognizing your faults so you can grow as a person and grow together. It’s choosing to have the hard conversations instead of taking the easy way out, fighting to be together even when the fight is exhausting. It’s a choice you have to make every day, a mountain you climb together. Love isn’t easy. It’s not supposed to be. But loving you, firefly? Loving you is the easiest choice I’ve ever made, and I’ll choose you for the rest of my tomorrows.”