Happy Wednesday evening, everyone.
How are you? Thank you for being here with me tonight. Grab a tea or something warm, and let’s sit together for a moment.
Tell me how you’ve been and what you’ve been up to. Shoot me a text or drop me a comment… I still treasure our moments together, even when time gets away from me. I’m learning to show myself a little grace as I try to keep up with all the places I write and share.
Below, I’ll add links to my other platforms. If I’m not here, I’m usually over on one of the others, doing my best to stay connected.
(2) Love Life with Dawna | Dawna-Rae | Substack
I’ve officially begun writing eulogies, and soon I hope to begin writing obituaries as well. I know that might not sound enjoyable, but for me, it truly is. Being trusted with someone’s legacy, hearing their stories, capturing their essence, honoring their life… it’s a gift I don’t take lightly.
I’ll start sharing small excerpts from those writings soon, most likely over on my Eternal Echoes blog. That space is dedicated to legacy, remembrance, and the stories we leave behind.
My Home ‹ Eternal Echoes Writing — WordPress.com
Love Life, this space right here, is meant for something different.
This is where I write about life’s details and moments, the slowing down, the breathing, the choosing presence over pressure. It’s where I explore topics that come to me through conversation, observation, curiosity, or experience. It’s where we talk about the things that shape us, stretch us, and help us grow.
Love Life with Dawna is a place where I hope we can engage in uplifting discussions, at least most of the time. I know some topics stir emotions or spark honesty… and that’s okay. I value the truth we share here.
My hope is that we continue building lives with purpose, curiosity, and heart. Lives we don’t need to escape from but can grow and thrive within. I want this space to feel like a branch of your own home; Familiar, safe, warm, and welcoming.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you for showing up for me, even when time escapes me and I fail to show up for you. Your presence means more than you know.
Tonight, I wanted to talk about something that came to mind while I was out with a friend this week. I overheard a conversation between a man and a woman. I don’t remember exactly what she said, but I remember how quickly he shut her down. He got defensive, needing to be right. And she did what so many women do, myself included, she shut down. She softened her tone, changed her words, and said, “All I meant was…”
I saw it in her face. I heard it in her voice. She didn’t want another argument. She didn’t want to fight with someone who was determined to die on the hill of being right.
And it made me think…
How many times have I shut down because I didn’t want to argue a point, knowing full well I couldn’t convince the person to look at the entire picture instead of the mountain of “being right” they created?
Some people need to be right all the time. Some become so fixated on one thing that they can’t see there’s more to the situation than they’re willing to admit.
I was telling my friend tonight, the older I get, the less drama I care to take on. I’m learning that I truly enjoy my own space and quiet moments. That’s not to say I don’t love and adore John. It’s simply saying I enjoy my own company too. I’m beginning to like myself. I like who I’m becoming, and I enjoy time alone while writing, crafting, or reading.
Sometimes I listen to music and travel down memory lane. Usually, when I do that, I’m thinking about my dad. Sometimes I daydream about what it will look like when Eternal Echoes is fully up and running… the wonderful people I’ll meet, the incredible stories I’ll get to hear. I dream about my future with John, and I dream about the things I want to accomplish with the rest of my life. The things I want to pass on to our sons. The legacy I hope to leave them when I’m gone.
The situation I witnessed this week made me think about how often we shrink ourselves to keep the peace. How often we soften our truth because someone else’s need to be right is louder than our need to be heard. And how many times we’ve walked away from conversations feeling small, unseen, or misunderstood, not because our point wasn’t valid, but because the argument wasn’t worth the emotional cost.
The older I get, the more I realize that peace is not the absence of conflict, it’s the presence of self‑respect. It’s knowing when to speak and when to let silence be the answer. It’s recognizing that some people aren’t looking for understanding; they’re looking for victory. And I no longer have the desire to participate in battles where the only prize is someone else’s ego.
I’m learning to choose myself in those moments. To choose calm. To choose quiet. To choose the life I’m building. One that feels steady, intentional, and rooted in love.
And maybe that’s part of growing up… or growing inward. Realizing that the conversations we walk away from say just as much about us as the ones we stay for. Realizing that protecting our peace is not selfish, it’s sacred.
As I sat there watching that woman shrink, I felt a familiar ache. Not for her words, but for her spirit. For the part of her that knew she wouldn’t be heard no matter how gently she tried. For the part of her that learned, somewhere along the way, that silence was safer than truth.
I’ve been her. Maybe you have too.
And maybe that’s why I’m writing this tonight… because I don’t want us to keep shrinking. I don’t want us to keep choosing silence over self. I don’t want us to keep walking away from our own voice just because someone else refuses to listen.
We deserve better than that. We deserve conversations that feel like connection, not combat. We deserve relationships where being understood matters more than being right.
And we deserve lives, real, full, present lives, where our peace is protected, our voice is valued, and our hearts are allowed to unfold without fear.
When I think about that, I realize it’s not just a hope… it’s a choice. A daily one. A quiet one. A gentle one. It’s the kind of choice we make in small moments, the moments where we decide not to shrink, not to argue, not to carry someone else’s need to be right on our shoulders.
It’s the choice to live in peace, at least in the places we can control. The choice to honor our own calm. The choice to walk away from what hurts and lean into what heals.
And that’s where I want us to meet each other… in the choosing.
May we learn to walk away from the battles that ask us to shrink and lean into the moments that invite us to grow. May we choose peace over proving, presence over pressure, and truth over the need to be right. And may we continue building lives that feel like home. Steady, warm, and rooted in heart.
PS:
If you’ve ever felt yourself, go quiet just to keep the peace, you’re not alone. Your voice matters… even in the moments you choose not to use it.
Until next time, don’t forget, Love Life++ Hugs
Dawna‑Rae
may your heart return to itself again and again
Love Life with Dawna 