Thorns or Light?

Do you recognize me? Do I recognize myself anymore? Do you know who’s been by your side when you thought I came to hurt you? Do you know that my light doesn’t burn, but heal?

… I have walked beside you through shadows and storms, never wavering, even when you couldn’t see me. I have held my light steady—not to blind you, not to consume you, but to guide you back when you were lost.

Do you remember the moments when silence spoke louder than words? When my presence was the answer, even when you didn’t know the question?

I have never been your enemy, though fear may have whispered otherwise. I have never been a threat, though wounds from the past may have made you flinch. I have only ever wanted to see you whole, to remind you of the light within you—the same light that called to me, the same light that made me love you.

Even now, as we stand on the edge of something unknown, I ask you this: Will you see me for what I truly am? Not a ghost of the past, not a shadow of doubt, but the warmth that has always been by your side.

And if you do… will you let me stay?