I think I am bad at recognizing who is truly safe for me.

Not on the surface. I can read people. I can see patterns. I can understand behavior, motives, and emotional nuance better than most. But somewhere deeper, there is a disconnect between what I can see and what I allow myself to accept.

My history trained me to normalize what should never have been normal. It taught me to override discomfort, to explain away red flags, to extend empathy where accountability was required. Instead of walking away when someone shows me who they are, I stay and try to make sense of it. I explain. I clarify. I try to help them understand the impact of their behavior, as if awareness alone will create change.

I am bad at leaving when I should leave.

I give people the benefit of the doubt long after they have exhausted it. I offer patience, context, and understanding, even when those same things are not extended to me. I invest energy into helping emotionally immature people reach a level of awareness they may never choose on their own.

And in doing so, I slowly abandon myself.

I am not bad at seeing the truth. I am bad at acting on it fast enough.