like a fire that consumes all before it

War of the Foxes, Richard Siken

“Moscou la Bleue” (c. 1920′s), by Leonid Brailowsky (1867-1937)

“Being what you are looks like this: You enter every room as a calm, neutral observer. You are average. You don’t have an agenda. Your only job is to listen and observe and offer your support. Your only job is to watch and learn and allow room for yourself, even when you don’t say a word, even when you don’t look that good, even when you seem useless. There you are, giving yourself the right to be without running or hiding or dancing. That is grace. It matters.

Being still and silent and broken is its own kind of religion.

Doing this — existing around other people without proving yourself — works well because it feels good. It feels good when you’re not trying hard to win people over. It feels good to stand without adornment and know that you are enough. But it also works because good people respond to it. Trustworthy people will accept and embrace your listening and support and your silence. Untrustworthy people will think you’re a fucking weirdo, or believe that you’re not worthy enough because you’re not dancing or running or staying half-hidden and building suspense.

In contrast, it is exceptionally difficult to feel connected or close to other people when you’re sure that your value is conditional. You can spend decades in this state, and the more energy you put into keeping other people happy, the more convinced you become that no one is dependable and no one loves you for you. That doesn’t mean that you haven’t withstood abuse or tolerated selfish friends. But refusing to give yourself the right to simply exist is a way of preventing other people from simply existing. Everything is bartered or traded. No relationship is what it is: lopsided and weird and flawed and sweet. Every effort must be reciprocated with equal and opposite force (even if your emotional accounting is never shared with anyone) or you’re being ripped off or taken for granted. No one is allowed to be broken. You have to be better than you really are, and so does everyone else.

Once you develop an independent faith in your own value (this takes constant, repeated reminders to be compassionate and patient with yourself for the first time ever), then you can start to treat other people as valuable even when their value isn’t immediately apparent. You can enter the room as a broken person, sit with your brokenness without hiding it, and let it exist out in the open. You don’t have to share your own secrets straight out of the gate. You can ask people about the things that broke them, because you understand that being broken is interesting and includes a good story, or maybe 100 good stories. You listen to their stories not because you expect that then they’ll listen to yours, but because you’re making it your goal to take in reality, to connect, to get closer to the real world and the real people who live in it.”

Ask Polly: How Do I Start Over Now That I Know How Damaged I Am?

this guy gets it

The decadence

i wish i had this man’s “dick out no pants” approach to his work

Fans: you're gonna mess up The Batman

Rob Pat: if you annoy me enough, I'll do it on purpose

Pathologic 2 + The Marble Nest, Soundtrack, and Artbook are all currently 50% off on Steam

alright, here it is: which member of the murder family are you?

— Mike Young, “None Of It Grace”

JUST BECAUSE IM HUNTING YOU THROUGH THIS ABANDONED MALL WHILE PLAYING A THREATENING MELODY ON MY HURDY GURDY DOESN'T MEAN I LIKE YOU

Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov (via echymosis)

this isnt about like actual nazis & shit but can we normalize seeing something problematic & contacting the op about it. not every fuckup is a deliberate act of malice. sometimes people really dont realize theyre doing/drawing/saying something shitty. all the time i see people making callouts & “warning” everyone about people over one unfortunate drawing or a single poor word choice & its like. yeah its shitty and yeah being ignorant isnt an excuse but it isnt that hard to be like “hey this thing was kinda fucked up” before turning it into a public ordeal. & also like its hard to know you fucked up if nobody points it out

like im not trying to make excuses for people, we all need to put in the effort to learn and grow and do better, but some of yall are just so thirsty for drama & it straight up is not productive At All. like that shit is so performative & doesnt accomplish anything useful 

people on twitter seemed to enjoy daniil with his tiny cup so please. look at him.