I used to stay. Even when my bones told me to run, even when my heart felt heavy like I was carrying stones. I thought staying meant caring. I thought bending myself into shapes I didn’t recognize meant being loyal. But all it did was take my light and leave me with embers I could barely keep alive.
I met those who saw me as a cover—something to hold up when it was convenient, something to set down when the moment passed. They never met me halfway; instead, they left me standing on the edge of promises they never intended to keep. I lost so many of my sparks trying to warm hands that were never meant to hold mine. I gave so much that I forgot what it felt like to receive anything in return.
But then I learned. The hard way, yes—but I learned.
I made a promise to myself that day I finally found my peace: I will outgrow anything that drains me. I will break the cycle that kept me tied to people who only took and never gave. I will never again trade my self-respect for the comfort of having someone—anyone—around me.
So here’s my line in the sand:
I will meet your energy with the same measure you give me. If you bring warmth, I’ll build a fire. If you bring kindness, I’ll plant a garden. But if disrespect knocks at my doorway—if you take more than you give, if you use me as a shield instead of standing beside me—I will leave.
I will leave friendships that ask more than they offer. I will leave family dynamics that make me feel small. I will leave lovers who don’t see my worth. I will leave careers that dim my light. I will even walk away from the things I once dreamed of having, if they demand I lose myself to keep them.
This isn’t being cold. This is being fair—to me. This is honoring the parts of me I almost lost trying to belong where I wasn’t wanted.
So I write you off now—not with anger, but with clarity. Not with regret, but with hope for what comes next.
I’m taking my sparks back. All of them.
— Leih Escalante
But then I learned. The hard way, yes—but I learned.
I made a promise to myself that day I finally found my peace: I will outgrow anything that drains me. I will break the cycle that kept me tied to people who only took and never gave. I will never again trade my self-respect for the comfort of having someone—anyone—around me.
So here’s my line in the sand:
I will meet your energy with the same measure you give me. If you bring warmth, I’ll build a fire. If you bring kindness, I’ll plant a garden. But if disrespect knocks at my doorway—if you take more than you give, if you use me as a shield instead of standing beside me—I will leave.
I will leave friendships that ask more than they offer. I will leave family dynamics that make me feel small. I will leave lovers who don’t see my worth. I will leave careers that dim my light. I will even walk away from the things I once dreamed of having, if they demand I lose myself to keep them.
This isn’t being cold. This is being fair—to me. This is honoring the parts of me I almost lost trying to belong where I wasn’t wanted.
So I write you off now—not with anger, but with clarity. Not with regret, but with hope for what comes next.
I’m taking my sparks back. All of them.
— Leih Escalante
