reading.
a few plain pieces on the yes that goes out before you've decided anything. it's the loudest kind of drift. there's a half-second in there where it's still a choice. no fixing, no five steps.
why do i say yes to everything → it isn't politeness and it isn't weakness. it's fear showing up before you get to choose. and there's a half-second before it. how to stop people-pleasing → i haven't stopped. what i have is smaller: catching one half-second yes at a time, out of the hundreds that try to slip out. how to say no without feeling guilty → the guilt is an old habit, not proof i did something wrong. i stopped waiting for it to go away before i said no. how to stop overcommitting → the packed calendar is just what all those yeses left behind. the calendar isn't the thing to fix. the next yes is.the longer, messier version is the actual journal. my entries, and the ones people send back. it lives at the writing →
— heart