To the girl with her head down,
Honey, I'm much like you.
I walk around with my head facing the ground. I play with the seams of my pants. I chew my nails. I never really look somebody in the eye.
It's awful, really. But we're used to it and it's comfortable so we do it anyways.
It seems normal now. I never look up when I'm walking anymore. My nails have never been shorter. I pick at my skin now because messing with the seams on my pants wasn't working anymore.
It's a cycle that will rip us apart if we don't get out but we don't know how to stop it.
And everyone around us wants to help but it never seems to come off that way. Either they tell us to stop being so shy or they push us into social situations. Or they tell us to get over it. We know their intentions are from the heart but they go about it in the worst way possible.
It's frustrating and it hurts but we just keep our face towards the ground so our hair covers the tears falling off our cheeks.
But all we need is to be told it's alright. Because it is alright. We can be working on reducing our anxiety in little steps but we're still moving forward. It is alright as long as you don't plan on staying in the same spot because it's comfortable.
Life starts at the end of our comfort zone. Take a small step or two. You're still moving in the right direction. Forward is forward, right?
So to the girl with her head down... Lift your chin an inch or two and stop to look at the flowers. One step at time, you can do it.
