I feel strangely disconnected from the world, like I'm floating in a parallel universe a few inches to the left. I have words in my head that I want to get down on the page, but when I sit down to write them, they disintegrate and blow away. What was it I wanted to say just a moment ago?
Why am I so absent from my own life? Why am I still so afraid to be perceived, to act in a way that might leave a mark, to change anything or influence anyone? A passive observer.
I want to reach out and I don't. I miss my friends and I have nothing to say. I send a couple emoji reactions so they know I'm still here, still thinking of them, still watching and laughing along, but we both know it's inadequate.
When we do talk it's like no time has passed, we laugh and joke and banter, but about the past, the future, anything but right now. Anything about how I'm struggling.
I don't want to post this or even write it, why would anyone care about this disjointed and deeply personal sketch? And if it's just for me, shouldn't it stay in my own private journal? But if the point is to start to will myself back into the public view, then I can't accomplish that by keeping it to myself.
I guess I am still recovering from publicly coming out. If every action has an equal and opposite reaction, it makes sense that I would retreat into myself, go invisible again.
In a lot of ways, I tried my hardest to be seen on my terms, to define myself to a wider audience, and I still came up short. Most saw what they wanted to see, not what I was saying about myself, not me. They saw the narratives that were familiar, that they had heard before, and even while saying that they understood and accepted me, they proved that they truly did not.
So what is the point of trying to be perceived?
I am painting the walls of my apartment, filling nicks and holes in the drywall, obsessing over the surface as if it could fill the holes in me. Erasing all signs of contact, of life living within these walls. Zooming in on every tiny imperfection makes it hard to imagine that there is anything beyond these walls.
I miss my best friend and I want to see them. Maybe that's all I need to say; maybe that's why I can't find any other words. I know what to say and the question is just - can I be vulnerable enough to say it?