Ope K. King

and let darkness kiss me on the forehead.

Affection so chilling cold;

I burn with the fires of despair.

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Dear Self,

I'm sorry for all the crap I put you through.

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honey,

and a shot of vodka,

and long after I am sober,

you'd still taste like forever.

They say a picture can speak a thousand words....but we only listen to one. We only see the surface and compare our lives to that one word: 'happy', 'rich', 'content', 'pretty', 'hot', 'successful', 'goal-slayer' etc..

We fail to listen to the other words lying under the surface. That 'happy' family you envy might have been through the worst hell you could imagine before they came to be 'happy' or they might have their hell coming for them in the future. Who knows?

That former schoolmate of yours that got 'rich', you know not the hours they put in, the sacrifices they made, the deals they arranged, the blood they sweat before they became 'rich'. Or maybe he/she is rich but empty inside. Perhaps they have an illness they're battling with in secret, an addiction, perhaps they are on the verge of being bankrupt. You have no idea.

That 'pretty, 'hot' person on social media that you envy, do you know if they had surgery to look like that? Do you know the daily hard routines he or she has to go through to look like that? Trust me, I am a natural woman with a natural hair and do not believe in makeup, yet, to look good! I go through a lot everyday. I have 4 different skin care routines, don't get me started on natural hair care. The detangling, massaging, different oils, then the foods I have to eat, cut back, things I have to do just to look good, is enough to make me want to cut my hair and go bald.

Let's say looking 'hot' and 'pretty' is easy for this person, do you know if their bf/gf just dumped them and they've cried all night, cleaned their face, looked good just to remind the ex what they are missing? What if that person is going through an abusive relationship and is hiding it? Don't say men don't go through abusive relationships. They do. Whether mental or physical... What if that 'pretty' 'hot' person has controlling parents and hate the life they are forced to live? Who. Knows.

Be cautious of what you envy without knowing its history. A picture may speak a thousands words but it can also lie. And I'm not just talking about pictures on social media, I'm also talking about pictures people paint for others to see. You don't really know anybody. You can only know yourself.

If you don't know how to dance with darkness, don't fall for bad boys/girls. They already know the Dark. They understand it. They embrace it. You can see the light go out in their eyes and you're left wondering what their thoughts are.

If you are not familiar with the Dark, you'll stumble in their path. You will find yourself feeling alone, confused, sometimes even rejected when they are around you. They are The Dark Ones..... and they eclipse suns that fail to understand the night in them.

To love them, you have to be the Moon; quiet and accepting and always there for them. Sometimes you don't have to bring your full strength to the battle, sometimes half is enough, sometimes you can be the stars polka dotting a map back to dawn.