I wish you could see yourself through my lens just once.
Because then you would see the beauty that lies beyond the darkness, beyond the restless nights and days of trying again.
From my perspective,
you would see a world that is worth fighting for.

I remember my own world,
unable to see beyond the vast emptiness
until I tried on others’ view of me.
“There is a world grander than sickness,” they would say.
“Look for the rose-coloured moments and live for those .”

I know, I know, that seems impossible
What good moments are there?

Go and see the sunrise, even if you don’t feel the rays yet.
Read your favourite book, even if every page is a struggle.
Take yourself out for a walk and feel the air of possibility.

Remind yourself of the person you want to become and avoid
views that don’t allow growth.

I have been told that I see the world through rose-coloured glasses.
but through this lens of beauty is a person who stumbled through the dark,
a person who can say to others …
this world needs people like you – the rule-breakers, the deep thinkers, and the wild-eyed wanderers who see great possibilities even after all you’ve been through.

Because you
are the ones that will make a difference.

So here, try my view of you
and trust me when I say
It’s spectacular…

Copyright ©️ words and art by April Mansilla