Hello, listener. This is Flowers, and I hope you are having, well, I don't want to say
a good day. I hope you are treating yourself with kindness. I don't think that enough of
us do that on a daily basis. I think that we're all wrapped up in so many different
things that we forget to take care of ourselves. I myself can be guilty of that, or I get so
worried and caught up about taking care of my own friends that I'll slip up. I won't
eat or drink water for that day, and that's not kind to myself or to my friends who I
want to be there for. In these past few days, there's been a lot to come up. Valentine's
Day came and went. We caused chaos everywhere. But more so, this is a check-in. I want to
make sure that you're all okay, that you all know that you're loved and cared for, that
bad things can happen. Bad moments will come, and they will pass. We breathe. We keep breathing,
and we keep getting a little stronger every day. And I know that's hard to believe. I
know that at times we have, we have at times perhaps forgotten that bad moments don't make
a bad life. No. And I think that too many of us demand perfection from ourselves. It's
not that we're not trying. It's that we think that when we try, it has to be right, it has
to be perfect. And it doesn't. Just because a relationship didn't work out doesn't mean
you're never going to find someone else. Just because you trusted the wrong person doesn't
mean that the right person will gain your trust, or that the right person isn't the
next one you happen to put your faith in. A lot of times we let the things that other
people say or do to us define us. And we are so much more than that. You, dear listener,
are so much more than that. My ex used to do this thing. He, um, he used to tell me
I was too much. I was too loud. Too happy. Too excited. Too everything. Everything was
wrong with me. And, listener, I want to tell you that I didn't listen to him. I want to
tell you that when we ended things I was the same person. I want to tell you that I didn't
allow him to poison or change me. But that would be a lie, dear listener. I let him into
my heart and I let him into my mind. I got quiet. I started to believe that everyone
would feel this way. That everyone I came across would find me the same. So I had to
change in order to be loved. And that wasn't kind to myself. Because it wasn't a change
I wanted to make. It was a change that made me sad. I liked getting excited for things.
I liked being happy. I love being me now more than ever. And even though I do not have a
romantic partner, even though no one has shown that kind of interest in me in a very long
time, I still have joy. I still get excited when someone brings up 80s hair bands. When
someone talks about NSYNC versus Backstreet Boys, the highly, highly debatable debate.
My heart still flutters when someone talks about Carrie Fisher and Star Wars and what
those movies mean to me. And when you talk about Greek mythology or Norse mythology or
folklore in general, I still get this race in my heart. When we talk about ancient runes
and symbols and Celtic knots and their ties to other, other folklore, I still get excited.
It took me a while to get back to this place, dear listener. But I'm starting to feel like
me more and more every day by doing something kind for myself and realizing that that's
not selfish. That it's something needed in order for me to be the best person for myself
and my friends and my community. I know that Valentine's Day brings a lot of happiness,
sadness, so many mixed emotions for so many of us out there. I would have loved to have
woken up to something from someone. But instead, I spent the day with friends on Twitter, Discord,
Reddit. I spent the day reminding myself that there were people who want to spend time with
me. Oh dear listener, please do not dwell on the lack of romance or personal relationships.
There's so much more to life and to you than those simple things. So, this is flowers reaching
out to you. Your worth is more than just your job, your partners. Your worth is all the
stars above. Your worth is more valuable than gold. Because your worth can help others realize
what they're worth. When you're kind to yourself, you show others that they should do the same.
That being kind to yourself is never a selfish thing, but rather a way to show others. So,
if you have stuck through all of this, I hope you do more than one kind thing for yourself.
I hope you know that you're cared for. And I hope you never let anyone try to take what
you have worked so hard to build. And I hope you find someone who sees your value and only
seeks to enrich and build it, never to diminish or take away from it. I am patient, listener.
Because if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, I know that I have friends and a community.
Don't worry, dear listener. There's always hope. Always.