Life Is a Scam

Life is a scam.

Not because everyone is out to cheat you, but because the packaging is rarely what it promises to be.

The world outside has its share of predators. But with age, you discover something more unsettling—sometimes the confusing ones are sitting across your dining table, sharing your roof, or smiling at you like everything is perfectly fine.

And suddenly, you don't know what to believe. A word? A promise? A story? Your own version of what happened?

So perhaps the answer isn't to become suspicious of everyone. That would be a terrible way to live.

Perhaps it is simply to trust yourself a little more.

That instinct that makes you pause.
That discomfort you cannot explain.
That tiny voice saying, something doesn't add up.

Listen to it. You don't need to investigate every person or decode every conversation. You don't need to carry the exhausting responsibility of figuring everyone out.

Keep life uncomplicated. Say what you mean. Do what feels right. Keep your boundaries quietly. Don't overshare. Don't chase explanations from people who have already shown you who they are.

And don't let someone else's behaviour turn you into a person you don't recognise. I am learning that peace doesn't come from knowing whom to trust.

It comes from knowing what you will do when trust is broken. Perhaps that is what growing up really is—not becoming cynical, but becoming discerning.

The world may continue to be a little crooked. Let it. I would rather walk through it with open eyes, a soft heart and a spine of my own.

Because if life is indeed a scam…

I am no longer interested in beating it. I simply refuse to be fooled twice.

In Popsie's words - Do what you believe is right! Just do it right. 

— Juju