One of the greatest obstacles of human growth is the separation between heart and self, an illusion that can trap a soul for lifetimes. We force the heart to receive something it doesn't want to. To beat faster than it's ready for. To quiet down as we bury innocence and childhood dreams while denying our true love-yourself-stories.
And for what? Why?
Your heart is not the fool!
It is not blind!
It is the thunder of your chest.
It is the birthplace of every breath.
Soul growth begins the moment you realize that you are not separate from your heart. That it is not an obstacle to overcome, but a beacon guiding you home.

-Jamie Homeister

Hey, it's okay.
It's all going to be okay.
I know you're going through this really big thing right now and I know it's making you feel like you have to pick a side. It's the classic 'hope vs. logic' game, but don't let others fool you into thinking that your choice is wrong.

Sometimes we will go with our heart
and sometimes we will lead with our mind.
And you know what? That's perfect.
You know why?
Because you're the one who's making the choice.

Do you know more people are willing to speak out on behalf of a stranger then they are for themselves? Crazy, right?
Don't be afraid.
Before you commit, ask yourself does it feel right? And, does it feel truthful?
Don't focus on the tomorrows truth or yesterdays truth. Be with yourself in this very moment and ask yourself these two questions. As long as you can answer one, go with it. Both will lead to successes and failures. Both with lead to challenges and opportunities. You're strong enough, experienced enough, and capable enough to handle what comes after. It's all going to be okay.

Chin up, magnificent one.
-Jamie Homeister

I had forgotten how strong you are.
I see a girl before me
broken and entangled;
injected by a will she didn't ask for,
intruded by a power that wasn't meant to be hers.

I had forgotten about the courage it took to rise from this place.
To wake up the next morning.
To learn to breathe again.
How had I forgotten that?

Time has made me question if it was even real
but I remember when I see you,
wounded
fractured
split in two by a choice that wasn't yours;
a living object,
a stolen prize.

I didn't see you as a huntress.
A woman looking to reclaim the rights back to the true light of her soul.
A light that had been harvested from her very core,
held captive in their memory.

I didn't see you as a tower of strength,
waking up day after day in a bed you can't get out of to make
wondering what in this world even belonged to you anymore.

I didn't see any of this.
A shape-shifting warrior.
A goddess in trial.
All I could see was my twelve-year-old self.
And my thirteen-year-old self.
And my fourteen-year-old self.
And my fifteen-year-old self.
And my twenty-year-old self.

All I could see was you as my mirror,
and feel an earthquake rumbling
from fault lines still hidden,
still skewed,
even after all these years.

You are the most powerful woman in the world.
With your back straight
and jaw strong
you still let the tears fall from your face
and collect in a heart cut wide open to me. How did I not see you there?
How long have I not seen me?

-Jamie Homeister

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