The Writing Of Rebecca Bones

You can’t expect everyone you love to know how to be loved by you.

Some people were never taught what love is supposed to feel like.

So when you show up—real, open, honest—it doesn’t feel safe to them. It feels unfamiliar. Heavy. Suspicious.

To you, your love is something beautiful. A gift.
To them, love might have always come with pain. With conditions. With loss.

So they don’t reach back.

And you stand there, heart in your hands, wondering why it’s not enough.

Why they don’t say it.

Why they don’t show it.

Why they don’t feel it the way you do.

And it hurts—because from your side, you’re giving everything. 💔

But from their side, they might not even know what they’re holding.

Not everyone ignores love because they don’t care.

Some people don’t respond because they don’t understand it.

Some people don’t say it back because they’ve never learned how.

And yeah… that feels the same as rejection when you’re the one loving them.

But it’s not always rejection.

Sometimes it’s just damage.

Sometimes it’s fear.

Sometimes it’s someone standing in front of something real for the first time and not knowing what to do with it.

So if you’re going to love them—love them gently.

Not loudly. Not forcefully. Not in a way that demands they meet you where you are right now.

Love them in a way that doesn’t scare them away from it.

Show them, over time, that your love isn’t a trap.

That it won’t disappear.

That it won’t turn into something that hurts them.

And if they are willing, they will learn.

But don’t lose yourself trying to teach someone how to love you?

Because love should be patient — not one-sided.

And understanding someone’s wounds doesn’t mean you have to bleed for them.