Echoes of the Lost

good in goodbye

I never knew how to say "goodbye"

until you taught me that love can hurt,

until I realized that sometimes,

the hardest part isn't letting go,

but understanding why I needed to.

Now, for the first time,

I feel it's okay if our timelines end tonight.

In this time apart, I've discovered

that loving someone doesn't mean

locking away pieces of myself,

hiding my heart in shadows,

or bending until I break.

I once thought I was in love with you,

or at least that's what I convinced myself love should feel like.

But you were a mirror,

reflecting not my dreams, but my fears,

showing me that true love

isn't about possession or control,

but about freedom,

growth,

the courage to stand in my own light

even in your absence.

Let's get real.

I was more in love with the "could have beens"

and the "should have beens"

than with what actually was.

I romanticized our potential,

built castles in the air,

while the foundation crumbled beneath us.

I clung to illusions,

yearning for what might have been,

instead of facing the truth:

we were two souls tangled in chaos,

lost in the noise of what wasn't right.

Now, I'm learning to let go,

to appreciate the lessons

hidden in the pain,

to cherish the strength I found

in the cracks of our broken moments,

to say goodbye, not with sorrow,

but with gratitude,

for every heartbeat that led me to clarity,

for every step that takes me away

from the shadows,

and into the light of who I'm meant to be.

So here I stand,

at the edge of what was,

ready to embrace the unknown.

I'll carry the lessons like scars,

each one a testament to resilience,

each one a reminder that I am whole,

even without you.

I'll learn to love myself fiercely,

to honor my own dreams,

and in this journey of rediscovery,

I'll find the strength to rise,

to bloom in the light of my own truth.

Goodbye isn't the end;

it's the beginning of my freedom,

the start of a new chapter,

where I choose to love,

and to be loved,

for who I am—

unlocked, unafraid,

and unapologetically me.