Dating
Word of the Day: 目に入れてもいたくない
Unfortunately, today is the start of the Mercury Retrograde. I should've sent some emails yesterday. I was too weak to do so yesterday, also since the appointment didn't happen.. Well, I can't use that as an excuse, I was weak so, whether the appointment happened or not, I wouldn't have had the strength to do anything afterwards either way.
By Kayla McIntoshabout 3 hours ago in Confessions
Real-World Dating Challenges And How Lifestyle Changes Can Solve Them
Social anxiety is one of the barriers of contemporary dating that does not allow the singles to be able to approach a potential partner with confidence. A large number of them fear judgment, awkwardness or even rejection in social contexts. The lifestyle modifications that will desensitize anxiety triggers include frequent exposure to social contexts, joining of clubs, or attendance of community events. Before social interactions, incorporating mindfulness and relaxation techniques, such as meditation or deep breathing, also help decrease the stress. Through consistent steps of making social life more comfortable and engaging in relaxed reactions, singles gain confidence. This transition enables them to be authentic, to start conversations in a natural manner and to bond and the anxiety is turned into social competence and dating readiness.
By Mark Hipster3 days ago in Confessions
A Small Story About Honesty
Nearly a decade ago, a notification appeared on my computer screen that felt like a brush with destiny. At the time, I was an active participant in the digital world of fandom, leaving thoughtful, supportive comments on the social media posts of a well-known and internationally recognized actor I deeply admired. Then, the impossible happened: a private message arrived.
By Anna K.3 days ago in Confessions
Letters to the Grave
Have you ever felt the pull of the past—that quiet ache to return to the crossroads where words were left unsaid? Not to chase the echoes of the dead, but to face the living ghosts we carry—the ones who walked out of our days, or slipped from our minds, or were cut away like threads no longer meant to weave our story. These are the conversations that haunt the quiet moments, letters addressed to absences, sent to the spaces where people once stood before time, distance, or choice turned them into shadows.
By Jackie Fazekas3 days ago in Confessions
The Unopened Letter: What We Never Tell Our Parents and Why the Silence Lasts Forever. AI-Generated.
There is a letter you will never write. It lives inside you, fully formed, every word chosen, every sentence complete. In this letter, you tell your parents everything. Not the edited version, not the polite version, not the version that protects their feelings and your safety. The truth. All of it. The gratitude you have never known how to express. The wounds you have carried since childhood. The ways they shaped you, for better and worse. The person you have become, in all its complexity, and how much of that becoming traces back to them. The love you feel, so deep it terrifies you. The anger you have swallowed, so old it feels like part of your bones. The forgiveness you want to offer, if only they would ask. The understanding you long for, if only they could see.
By HAADI4 days ago in Confessions
Supporting New Hobbies
Though you and your partner might have a lot in common, there might be times when your partner wants to try a new hobby or experience with you by his or her side. Try to be optimistic when this happens and do your best to open your mind so you and your partner can bond over this new adventure. Of course, there are certain situations when you might not be able to join him or her, like if the experience entails something that goes against your religious beliefs or political views, but hopefully by the time you are together, you understand this about each other.
By Nicole Higginbotham-Hogue5 days ago in Confessions
The Sacred Fire
Ancient mysteries, from the secret rites of Eleusis in Greece to the profound and millennia-old Vedic traditions of India, never drew a sharp line between the flesh and the spirit. For these foundational civilizations, eroticism was far from a source of shame or a mere biological function; it was understood as the visible, vibrating manifestation of the divine force that animates the entire universe. They believed that the pulse of desire was the same pulse that moved the stars. In their view, to deny the body was not a sign of holiness, but a way to starve the soul of its most vital language.
By CECILE HEBELLE6 days ago in Confessions
Valentine's Day Passed. The Love Didn't
The Digital Fairy Tale Before I met him, I didn’t truly believe or know the meaning of unconditional love. He didn’t just teach me how to love; his effortless charm and constant supply of joy made me fall head over heels. For a time, it felt like a fairy tale. We built our future and forever together, and were so eager to arrive there.
By Anna K.8 days ago in Confessions
I Never Expected a Stranger to Teach Me This Lesson
I Never Expected a Stranger to Teach Me This Lesson BY: Khan Sometimes the people who know nothing about us leave the deepest impact. I used to believe that the most important lessons in life came from people we knew well — family, close friends, teachers, maybe even heartbreaks. I never imagined that a complete stranger would be the one to shift my perspective in a way no one else ever had. It happened on an ordinary evening that I almost didn’t remember. I was sitting at a small roadside café, exhausted after a long day that felt heavier than usual. Life wasn’t falling apart, but it wasn’t exactly coming together either. I had been working tirelessly toward goals that seemed to move further away every time I thought I was getting closer. Rejections had become routine. Motivation had turned into obligation. And somewhere in between, I had started doubting myself. The café was half empty. The sound of traffic hummed in the background. I stared into my untouched cup of tea as if it held answers. “Long day?” The voice startled me. I looked up to see an older man standing beside my table. He wasn’t dressed in anything remarkable — simple shirt, worn shoes, calm eyes. I nodded politely. “You could say that,” I replied. He smiled gently and asked if he could sit. Normally, I would have refused. I’m not the kind of person who easily opens up to strangers. But something about his presence felt unthreatening — almost comforting. So I agreed. We sat in silence for a moment. Then he said something unexpected. “You look like someone who’s carrying a question you don’t know how to ask.” That caught me off guard. I laughed awkwardly. “I guess I’m just tired.” “Tired,” he repeated. “Or disappointed?” I didn’t know why, but his words unlocked something. Maybe it was because he didn’t know me. Maybe it was because he had no expectations of who I was supposed to be. Whatever the reason, I found myself speaking honestly. “I’ve been trying really hard,” I admitted. “But nothing seems to work. It feels like I’m stuck. Like maybe I’m not meant for what I want.” He listened carefully. Not the kind of listening where someone waits for their turn to speak — but the kind where someone truly hears you. After I finished, he nodded thoughtfully. “Tell me,” he asked, “when you first started chasing this goal, why did you want it?” The question felt simple, yet I struggled to answer immediately. “Because I believed I could do something meaningful,” I finally said. “Because it felt right.” “And now?” “Now it feels exhausting.” He smiled softly. “Sometimes,” he said, “we don’t get tired of the dream. We get tired of doubting ourselves.” His words stayed in the air. He went on to tell me a brief story about his own life — how he once left a stable job to start something risky. How he failed. How people laughed. How he almost gave up. And how the lesson he learned wasn’t about success or failure — it was about identity. “I realized,” he said, “that I was measuring my worth by outcomes. But outcomes are temporary. Effort is character. Persistence is character. Even failure is character. If you only feel valuable when you win, you’ll feel worthless most of the time.” I felt that sentence deeply. For months, I had been tying my confidence to results. Every rejection felt personal. Every delay felt like proof that I wasn’t good enough. I had forgotten that growth rarely looks glamorous. “You know,” he added, finishing his tea, “the world doesn’t decide who you are. It only reacts to what you keep showing up for.” That line shifted something inside me. We talked for another fifteen minutes. Nothing dramatic. Nothing life-changing on the surface. Just calm conversation. When he stood up to leave, he gave me one last piece of advice. “Don’t quit on yourself during a slow chapter. Stories need those parts too.” And then he walked away. I never saw him again. But I carried that conversation home with me. That night, instead of replaying my failures, I replayed his words. I realized that I had been expecting progress to look loud and obvious. I had been expecting reassurance from the outside world. What I truly needed was internal steadiness. The stranger didn’t solve my problems. My goals didn’t suddenly become easier. But something important changed — my mindset. I stopped asking, “Why isn’t this working for me?” And started asking, “What is this teaching me?” The difference was powerful. Weeks later, opportunities began appearing — not because life suddenly felt sorry for me, but because I showed up differently. I stopped carrying desperation. I carried quiet confidence instead. Sometimes I wonder who that man was. Maybe he was just someone passing through. Maybe he had no idea how much his words mattered. But that’s the beauty of it. We don’t always get lessons from people who stay in our lives. Sometimes they come from those who cross our path briefly, say exactly what we need to hear, and disappear. I went to that café feeling stuck and unseen. I left realizing that my value was never on trial — only my patience was. And all it took was a stranger to remind me.
By Khan 9 days ago in Confessions
