You Are Not Crazy

You are not crazy.
You are not crazy because you perceive what others do not.
You not crazy for how deeply you feel, or the depth of love that you long for.
You are not crazy because your heart bleeds where others have closed theirs,
and you care about others do not. Could not.

You are not crazy because you feel when people dislike you.
When they hold anything other than love acceptance for your presence.
You are not crazy because you can read an intent behind a smile,
or know the truth in a lie.

You are not crazy for thinking the way you do.
To consider the life of a stranger long after they have passed by.

You are not crazy because tears fall from your face in laughter and joy as easily as sorrow and pain. You are not crazy because they fall for no reason at all.

You are not crazy because you cannot speak the words that you really want to,
that you need to, because you simply cannot bear to hurt another even if they've hurt you—
  especially if they've hurt you.

You are not crazy to say you love and hate life all in the same breath.
To feel as though you don't belong to this earth, that you are from another planet.
You are not crazy because you cannot fit in with social norms—
not because you don't try, but because no matter what you do there is always a difference between you and them.

You are not crazy when you feel the wind hug your body
or feel the heartbeat of the earth through the soles of your feet.
You are not crazy to be moved by the flight of a bird,
watching ripples in a pond,
or finding a stone that asks to be carried with you.

You are not crazy when you sing songs you've never learned with lyrics you can't remember,
yet they inspire so much hope and love within you that you simply cannot imagine how they haven't existed before you.

You are not crazy for living deeply.
For letting your soul speak for you.
For believing in yourself where others choose not to.

You are not crazy for being an individual,
separate from the way you were raised and all those you call friends.

If you do any of these things,
if any of this sounds familiar,
you are not crazy—
you are just witnessing your true self in a world full of souls asleep to theirs and we need you.
We need you to be exactly as you are.

You are not crazy.
You are remembering.
And I thank you for being brave enough to be you.

-Jamie Homeister