Thank you for your kind words Claudia! I’m so glad the prompt and reminder resonated with you. Wishing you lots of peace and clarity as you reflect on it in the coming days. 🧡
Another amazing and touching letter. Thank you Salwa. I particularly loved your recommendations, they are all in my favourites list. Especially the book and brene brown. Xx
Thank you Maria for your thoughtful words! I’m so happy to hear that you loved the recommendations. bell hooks and Brené Brown are such gems! Wishing you lots of inspiration as you dive into them. xx
Your letter touched my heart in so many ways, as I’ve gone through those same stages myself at different points in my life. Lately, I've been grappling with the idea that love can feel like everything and nothing all at once. It’s a complex feeling that seems to resist definition, yet we can recall and cherish it so deeply. Thank you for opening up and sharing such a personal reflection. I truly look forward to exploring these thoughts and feelings further through your letters.💛
Claudia, thank you for such a beautiful response! I’m so touched that my words resonated with you. Love really is such a complex and evolving feeling. I’m grateful to be on this journey together and can’t wait to explore more of these thoughts with you. 💛
This is such a beautifully written and deeply reflective piece Salwa. I love this line.. "Love isn’t the enemy—pain is." It's such an important distinction, yet so many of us blur the two after being hurt.
I also love your idea of writing monthly letters to yourself—it’s such a creative and compassionate way to process growth, healing, and self-discovery. How has this practice changed the way you see yourself and your relationship with love?
Karen, thank you so much for your kind words! I’m glad that line resonated with you—it’s something I’m still trying to fully embrace. As for the monthly letters, it’s been such a grounding practice. It helps me reflect on where I am and where I’ve been, and I think it’s allowed me to approach love and self-acceptance with more compassion. It’s a way to check in with myself and honour the progress I’ve made. I’m definitely finding that I’m able to see myself with more kindness, and that helps me cultivate healthier relationships with others, too. 😊💛
What a beautiful letter, so lovely written, and so true, real love is unconditional, real love is never about hurt or loosing yourself, thank you for sharing your love❤️
Simone, thank you so much for your sweet words! I’m so glad it resonated with you. I completely agree—real love is all about acceptance and never about losing who we are. It’s a beautiful reminder to keep nurturing that love, both for ourselves and for others. 💛❤️
Your so welcome, it is beautiful and important ❤️ You are so right, we have to nurture real love for ourselves and others every day, I truly believe that if everybody reminded that, the world would be a much better place for all of us ❤️
Thank you so much for your kind words! It means a lot to me that this letter resonated with you. Embracing vulnerability really does open the door to growth, and I’m grateful to be on this journey together. 💛✨
Great post Salwa! I too have a complicated relationship to love, I was bullied as a child and it made me both craving of love and fearful of it at the same time. I have had more than my share of uneven relationships because of this. A great reminder to keep your heart safe, but open. I am saving this one to come back to the resources. 💜
Thank you for sharing a piece of your journey. I can really relate to the complexity of that feeling....craving love yet being fearful of it. It’s a delicate balance, but I’m glad this post spoke to you. Wishing you continued growth and healing as you keep your heart open. 💜
Selwa, thank you for this. It is a nice change from the doom and gloom as we here in Canada contemplate our possible extinction as a nation.
I am in a relationship that is causing me to examine my walls to love, despite my stated commitment of living in love. It's almost like a metronome, in, out, left, right, tic, toc. So I am proceeding carefully, maintaining vulnerability while not ignoring my instincts.❤️
David, thank you for sharing that. I can feel the tension in your words...navigating vulnerability while listening to your instincts is such a delicate dance. It’s not always easy, but honouring both your heart and your boundaries is such an important part of growth. Wishing you strength and clarity as you move forward with love and mindfulness. ❤️
Salwa! I was just about to say! You have the heart of Brene Brown - and then low and behold I saw that you recommended here to the crew! :) Welcome to the arena Salwa!
I love this piece with most of my heart as I'm learning lessons myself herein. I might wonder if, yes love isn't the enemy - and yet pain in many ways, though certainly in many others, isn't the enemy either but the Way.
Thank you so much for your kind words Bronce! Brene’s work has been such an inspiration to me, so that means a lot. And you’re right—pain, though difficult, often guides us to deeper understanding and growth. It’s a part of the journey, even when it doesn’t feel that way. Here’s to continuing to learn, grow, and embrace the process together! Cheers to you! 💛
Thank you so much David, that line really stayed with me as I wrote it....it just felt true. And I’m so glad the structure worked for you! I always try to weave everything back to that theme of becoming, because isn’t that what love (and life) is all about?
Thank you so much for sharing that. It’s powerful to reflect on how long it’s been since love felt like more than survival. I really hope that, in time, we can all find that sense of peace and belonging in love. Wishing you all the best on your journey, and thank you again for your thoughtful comment. 💛
Thank you for writing. Totally get it. Last relationship I was in was 17 years ago and it was so bad that I'm not even looking. Felt like you were writing the letter to me. I guess we all have so many similar experiences and the thing is by you writing this. It lets us know that we're not alone and there's a lot of us out there like this and that have been through challenges and trust issues, etc..
But we grow and we learn. i've been taught and believe that self-love comes first, and that can be difficult for some of us as well.
Really enjoyed it and the resources thank you so much 💕
Thank you so much for sharing that with me Kathleen. I’m so glad this resonated with you. It’s truly comforting to know we’re not alone in our experiences, even though they can feel isolating at times and i completely agree—self-love can be a challenging journey, but it’s so worth it. Wishing you continued growth and healing, and thank you again for your thoughtful words. 💖
thank you for this! I love the prompt to reflect & the reminder you share. something I will do in the coming days for sure 🧡
Thank you for your kind words Claudia! I’m so glad the prompt and reminder resonated with you. Wishing you lots of peace and clarity as you reflect on it in the coming days. 🧡
Another amazing and touching letter. Thank you Salwa. I particularly loved your recommendations, they are all in my favourites list. Especially the book and brene brown. Xx
Thank you Maria for your thoughtful words! I’m so happy to hear that you loved the recommendations. bell hooks and Brené Brown are such gems! Wishing you lots of inspiration as you dive into them. xx
Your letter touched my heart in so many ways, as I’ve gone through those same stages myself at different points in my life. Lately, I've been grappling with the idea that love can feel like everything and nothing all at once. It’s a complex feeling that seems to resist definition, yet we can recall and cherish it so deeply. Thank you for opening up and sharing such a personal reflection. I truly look forward to exploring these thoughts and feelings further through your letters.💛
Claudia, thank you for such a beautiful response! I’m so touched that my words resonated with you. Love really is such a complex and evolving feeling. I’m grateful to be on this journey together and can’t wait to explore more of these thoughts with you. 💛
This is such a beautifully written and deeply reflective piece Salwa. I love this line.. "Love isn’t the enemy—pain is." It's such an important distinction, yet so many of us blur the two after being hurt.
I also love your idea of writing monthly letters to yourself—it’s such a creative and compassionate way to process growth, healing, and self-discovery. How has this practice changed the way you see yourself and your relationship with love?
Karen, thank you so much for your kind words! I’m glad that line resonated with you—it’s something I’m still trying to fully embrace. As for the monthly letters, it’s been such a grounding practice. It helps me reflect on where I am and where I’ve been, and I think it’s allowed me to approach love and self-acceptance with more compassion. It’s a way to check in with myself and honour the progress I’ve made. I’m definitely finding that I’m able to see myself with more kindness, and that helps me cultivate healthier relationships with others, too. 😊💛
I love your approach Salwa 💛
💛
What a beautiful letter, so lovely written, and so true, real love is unconditional, real love is never about hurt or loosing yourself, thank you for sharing your love❤️
Simone, thank you so much for your sweet words! I’m so glad it resonated with you. I completely agree—real love is all about acceptance and never about losing who we are. It’s a beautiful reminder to keep nurturing that love, both for ourselves and for others. 💛❤️
Your so welcome, it is beautiful and important ❤️ You are so right, we have to nurture real love for ourselves and others every day, I truly believe that if everybody reminded that, the world would be a much better place for all of us ❤️
Oh Salwa, this letter exhudes truth and self-love. There's power in vulnerability, and you've shown us how to grow from pain. Thank you!
Thank you so much for your kind words! It means a lot to me that this letter resonated with you. Embracing vulnerability really does open the door to growth, and I’m grateful to be on this journey together. 💛✨
Great post Salwa! I too have a complicated relationship to love, I was bullied as a child and it made me both craving of love and fearful of it at the same time. I have had more than my share of uneven relationships because of this. A great reminder to keep your heart safe, but open. I am saving this one to come back to the resources. 💜
Thank you for sharing a piece of your journey. I can really relate to the complexity of that feeling....craving love yet being fearful of it. It’s a delicate balance, but I’m glad this post spoke to you. Wishing you continued growth and healing as you keep your heart open. 💜
Selwa, thank you for this. It is a nice change from the doom and gloom as we here in Canada contemplate our possible extinction as a nation.
I am in a relationship that is causing me to examine my walls to love, despite my stated commitment of living in love. It's almost like a metronome, in, out, left, right, tic, toc. So I am proceeding carefully, maintaining vulnerability while not ignoring my instincts.❤️
David, thank you for sharing that. I can feel the tension in your words...navigating vulnerability while listening to your instincts is such a delicate dance. It’s not always easy, but honouring both your heart and your boundaries is such an important part of growth. Wishing you strength and clarity as you move forward with love and mindfulness. ❤️
Salwa! I was just about to say! You have the heart of Brene Brown - and then low and behold I saw that you recommended here to the crew! :) Welcome to the arena Salwa!
I love this piece with most of my heart as I'm learning lessons myself herein. I might wonder if, yes love isn't the enemy - and yet pain in many ways, though certainly in many others, isn't the enemy either but the Way.
Cheers!
Thank you so much for your kind words Bronce! Brene’s work has been such an inspiration to me, so that means a lot. And you’re right—pain, though difficult, often guides us to deeper understanding and growth. It’s a part of the journey, even when it doesn’t feel that way. Here’s to continuing to learn, grow, and embrace the process together! Cheers to you! 💛
Salwa - Cheers to that, Cheers to Brene and Cheers to you indeed! :))
"Love should feel like home" is so beautifully put. Thank you for the thoughtful piece Salwa!
The structure in which you laid everything out was truly ace, and love how you tie everything back to the central theme around becoming.
Thank you so much David, that line really stayed with me as I wrote it....it just felt true. And I’m so glad the structure worked for you! I always try to weave everything back to that theme of becoming, because isn’t that what love (and life) is all about?
110%! Was such a great piece- love the insights and the way you bring people into the fold with your writing.
thanks for this plus the prompts and resources!
You're very welcome Grace
"Love should not feel like survival. It should feel like home."
I've been talking about this with my therapist lately. It's been almost 30 years since I felt like it wasn't survival.
Great post. Thank you!
Thank you so much for sharing that. It’s powerful to reflect on how long it’s been since love felt like more than survival. I really hope that, in time, we can all find that sense of peace and belonging in love. Wishing you all the best on your journey, and thank you again for your thoughtful comment. 💛
Thank you for writing. Totally get it. Last relationship I was in was 17 years ago and it was so bad that I'm not even looking. Felt like you were writing the letter to me. I guess we all have so many similar experiences and the thing is by you writing this. It lets us know that we're not alone and there's a lot of us out there like this and that have been through challenges and trust issues, etc..
But we grow and we learn. i've been taught and believe that self-love comes first, and that can be difficult for some of us as well.
Really enjoyed it and the resources thank you so much 💕
Thank you so much for sharing that with me Kathleen. I’m so glad this resonated with you. It’s truly comforting to know we’re not alone in our experiences, even though they can feel isolating at times and i completely agree—self-love can be a challenging journey, but it’s so worth it. Wishing you continued growth and healing, and thank you again for your thoughtful words. 💖
you're welcome Salwa. Have a beautiful day 🤗💕🙏
So beautiful Salwa. Thank you for sharing. Inspiring read ✨️❤️
Saira, thank you so much for your kind words! I’m so glad you found it inspiring. Your support means a lot. ✨
My pleasure. Anytime 🥰❤️