
Press play.
Don’t press rewind
Don’t press pause
Don’t look back.
I tell myself this every morning when I wake up and drag myself out of my dreams.
I’m okay, I’m okay, don’t let it consume you.
Don’t let the past haunt you.
Move forward.
Always
forward.
The dark always lingers. I fight every day to push it into the light to be burned away.
Don’t let it come back. Don’t even think about it.
Don’t engage
those dark thoughts
that invade my peace
my body
my everything
The uphill battle is exhausting
Because it’s a battle against myself
And sometimes I just want to retreat
But I force myself to look forward
Not back.
Don’t press pause
Press play.
(Illustration by Laura Wilson)