Confessions of a Late Bloomer Part 9 I remember being on a date once.A bad one. The man had introduced himself as a comedian,and I kept waiting for him to get funny.Instead, he complained. A lot. He told me about the city he used to live in,how his old stand-up crew would stay out late… Continue reading Permission to Leave
Confessions of a Late Bloomer Part 8 I have spent years falling for almost.The almost-love.The almost-available.The almost-ready.The almost-promises whispered late at night, wrapped in just enough sweetness to make me hope. I listened to sugar-coated words and called them sincerity.I ignored red flags and called them "growth edges."I mistook affection for intention. But almost never… Continue reading On Almost
Confessions of a Late Bloomer Part 7 There was a time when I couldn’t feel anything. I don’t mean numb like bored or apathetic.I mean a kind of emotional frostbite, a dull ache in place of what used to be light.A blank space where joy, excitement, even sadness used to live. I went through the… Continue reading The Year My Heart Went Numb
Confessions of a Late Bloomer Part 6 Before I ever learned to shrink myself inside relationships,I learned to shrink myself inside a system that told me it was love. Before the heartbreaks with names and faces,there was a different kind of heartbreak.A quieter one.A belonging that asked me to be small. I started going to… Continue reading The Places That Made Me and Unmade Me
Confessions of a Late Bloomer Part 5 People talk about divorce like it’s the ultimate heartbreak. And yes, losing a marriage is brutal.The unraveling of a life you thought you’d grow old in… it shakes your foundation.But what no one tells you is that sometimes, the deeper wound isn’t the partner who left.It’s the friend… Continue reading The Breakup That Hurt the Most
Confessions of a Late Bloomer Part 4 When I was younger, I hated hugs. It’s not like I grew up in a house without affection. But somewhere along the way, a hug became something that made me freeze. Like my body forgot what to do. Arms stiff. Heart racing. Eyes wide. I would default to… Continue reading The Girl Who Hated Hugs
Confessions of a Late Bloomer Part 3 I had my first boyfriend as a freshman in high school. I’m still not entirely sure how it moved from noticing him across the cafeteria to him being my official bf. Maybe it was the “fresh meat” effect at a small school. I was new, wide-eyed, and visibly… Continue reading First Kiss, Last Straw
Confessions of a Late Bloomer Part 2 Because I am a sucker for sharing all of my awkward, embarrassing late bloomer moments, I figured… why not make a series out of them? Because I have a lot of them. As a preteen and teen, I was expert-level at having a crush. Unreciprocated, of course.Some might… Continue reading What to Do With My Arms
Confessions of a Late Bloomer Part 1 I was a late bloomer in a lot of ways. I'm thankful for blooming on this timetable… now. As a pre-teen and teen, I watched those around me walk through the world with a confidence I couldn’t even fathom. That longing, to be as good, as sure, as… Continue reading Riding Without Hands
