Najwa Zebian

You’ve already accomplished the hardest part. So keep building. Keep working on yourself.

Please don’t make me
grieve you
while you’re still alive.

If they don't appreciate your presence, they may never recognize your absence.

When pain knocks on your door, welcome it. Let it in. Sit with it. Have tea with it. Understand it. Then let it leave.

You think that time will change them. It won’t. You think that they’ll realize their mistakes with time and run to you for forgiveness. They won’t. They will not. They. Will. Not. Let it sink in. Narcissists always believe that they are right. Once you become nothing to them, you are absolutely nothing. And after you expose their true colors, they start seeing you as the devil and run the other direction when you should be the one running away, further making you feel like you’re not worthy of their presence. It will bother you that they can be so heartless when they are the ones at fault. But remember: At least you have a heart. At least you can feel.

One of the beautiful things about getting to know yourself is realizing all the places where you’ve been trying really hard to feel welcomed and the people who don’t truly see or accept you as you are.

Stop dwelling in the past.
No, you could not have known
better.
No, you would not do things differently
if you went back.
No, they would not have
treated you differently if
you had acted,
looked, or
cared differently.
They are who they are regardless of
who you are.

He never loved you, but he loved
the reflection of the man he saw in your
eyes.
But listen to me, my friend.
You never loved him either.
You just loved being the queen.
You loved being the sun.
You loved being the woman behind a
great man.
You never loved him.
You loved having something to give.
Someone to fix. Someone to please.
You see, in love, you don't get what you
want.
You get what you think you get.

I've never wanted roses
to resist wilting
more than I do now.
That's how I know
that I want this love
to last.

I loved the person that you once
were,
not the person that you are today.

Every day, tell yourself this:

Keep your heart kind
no matter how dark the world gets.
You own only yourself.
You can only control your actions.
Keep your heart beautiful.
The world needs that.

I say it to myself
too.

I knew and still know that they are good people. They’d never willingly do something like that, but I’d always wonder, How could you not have known that leaving me behind for so long, and that not connecting with me emotionally, was wrong?

I Deserve It.
I'd rather be disappointed by the truth than satisfied with a lie. Respect me, not because I respect you, but because I deserve your respect. How pleased would you be if you found out I respected you only because I wanted you to respect me back or because I wanted something in return? I respect you because you deserve it. Don't listen to me just because I listen to you. I listen to you because you deserve to be heard. Don't be nice to me just because I'm nice to you. I'm nice to you because you deserve to be treated right. Don't show me that you care just because you know I care. I care for you because your heart needs care. If your thoughts and feelings are not genuine, point them in a direction other than mine. If I only give you what you deserve, at least keep me away from what I don't deserve.

For the to see you shine, you must stay far way, for you are like the sun; when you’re too close, your light make them blind. And when you’re too far, they seek you. So let them seek you. They’re getting your light regardless, but appreciating your presence is different from recognizing your existence. If they don’t appreciate your presence, they may never recognize your absence.

Change You can draw a path for your life and have all of your goals set. You can change yourself as much as possible and change things around you just to reach those goals. Here’s the catch. Never underestimate the power of fate. It can knock down the highest of goals that seem guaranteed in your life. Plan, yes, and decide, yes, but be prepared for plans not to work. If they don’t work despite your hardest efforts, there must be a reason. You may not be able to see the reason at the time, but you will one day, maybe even years later. Did your efforts go to waste? If you don’t learn from them, then yes, they did go to waste. Even after changing yourself and your surroundings for the sake of reaching that one goal, you may realize that it was waiting for you at the place where you started, when you were the true you who did not need to change or be changed. Change for yourself, not just for a goal.