Dear Reader,

September 1st, 2026

Hello again! I haven’t forgotten about y’all, my readers. I’m just trying to follow what I feel God is leading me to write, and lately, I haven’t been completely sure what that is.

I’m dealing with a lot behind the scenes, and instead of constantly writing about what is happening around me, I’ve been focusing more on healing what is happening inside of me.

I’ve been attending therapy regularly for almost a year now, and I can genuinely say that I have changed. I react differently. I recognize patterns I didn’t recognize before. I’m learning boundaries, and I’m learning that I don’t have to participate in every conflict I’m invited into.

But some wounds are harder to heal than others—especially when the person who caused some of those wounds is still actively trying to tear you down.

Sometimes life feels like if it isn’t one thing, it’s another.

Yesterday, I told my therapist something incredibly simple:

I just want a normal life.

I want a calm life. A peaceful life. A life where I don’t constantly feel like I have to defend myself, explain myself, prepare for the next conflict, or recover from the last one.

I don’t think I’ve ever truly had that kind of life.

So now, peace is becoming one of my biggest goals.

I’m trying not to engage in unnecessary conflict anymore. I’m trying to stop defending myself to people who have already decided what they want to believe about me. I’m learning that sometimes defending yourself over and over doesn’t bring peace—it just keeps you connected to the chaos.

And I know none of us are innocent when it comes to hurting people. We all make mistakes. We all say things we shouldn’t. We all have moments we wish we could take back.

The difference is what we choose to do afterward.

Some people recognize the hurt they’ve caused and work to change. Others continue the same patterns because changing would require them to take accountability.

I’m trying to remove myself from those people and those patterns.

Sometimes that’s easy. Sometimes you can simply walk away, block a number, close a door, and move forward.

Other times, you can’t.

Sometimes court orders, children, family circumstances, or other responsibilities mean you still have to communicate with someone who has caused significant emotional and mental damage. In those situations, healing looks different. You may not be able to completely remove the person, but you can learn to limit how much access their behavior has to your peace.

That’s what I’m learning now.

I’m learning boundaries. I’m learning not to engage when I recognize that something is being said simply to provoke a reaction from me. I’m learning that I don’t have to prove myself every time someone misunderstands me—or intentionally misrepresents me.

It is much easier said than done.

But lately, my prayer has been simple.

God, take everything that causes me anxiety. Take the things I cannot control, the people I cannot change, and the situations I cannot fix. Help me stop carrying what was never mine to carry.

I can’t say there has been some huge, overnight transformation. There hasn’t been.

But I do feel a little more at ease.

Maybe healing isn’t always dramatic. Maybe sometimes it’s simply noticing that something that would have ruined your entire day six months ago only gets five minutes of your attention today.

Maybe peace comes little by little.

Only time will tell.

But for now, I’m going to keep choosing healing. I’m going to keep going to therapy. I’m going to keep learning boundaries. I’m going to keep asking God to take what I cannot carry.

Because more than anything, I just want a peaceful life.

And I’m finally starting to believe that I’m allowed to build one.

Love always,

Kelsey