The Dream

Herb school. Near but not close.

Chit chat,
arrangements.

“May I join you?”
I am small.

Silence.

“It’s OK.”
I leave.
Even smaller.

SMS

“You’re not welcome with us.”

Report?
Ignore?
Respond?

I expand.

The Meaning

herb school
Community without belonging.

small
I make myself less before anyone asks.

rejection
There’s nothing left to interpret or accommodate.

expanding
No more shrinking. Being excluded doesn’t define me.

What Lingers…

What if belonging doesn’t matter when exclusion loses power?

---

Marginalia

There’s a difference between fearing you’re out of place and having it confirmed. But once the proof is there? It allows you to get out of your head and decide. What next?