This Is How It Feels When You Finally Let Them Go

When you realize you’ve finally let go of that person who was no good for you, the sky will be pink. The air will feel different and you just might find yourself crying because of it. You will notice this feeling after it rains: when the gold of the sun and the silver of the rain wed and there is a subtle lightness to the air and everything is covered in dew.

It will all feel a bit strange at first, as if you should be longing for something or as if you’ve forgotten something but you can’t remember what. And then suddenly, you will understand how this was inevitable: the meeting and the parting. How your togetherness never really felt like it was truly together, but hanging on by a thread.

When you finally let go of the person who you loved and who had trouble loving you just the same, it will hurt like a growing pain. The fact of the matter is that healing is supposed to hurt. It’s your heart’s way of telling you We’re getting better. We’ll be alright.

When you realize you are peeling away memories of them like the skin of a clementine, the rainy days will feel less heavy and the dew on the flowers will look the way your favorite song feels.

When you start to let them go from your grip, you’ll see that your body feels lighter. You’ll come to understand that your parting is a good thing and each day will get easier. You’ll look back on who you saw them as when you were together and when you were wearing rose-colored glasses, and you will realize that their laugh is anything but poetic and their hands are just hands.

Brooklyn-based poet, writer, avid coffee drinker, and music lover.

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