When Being Misunderstood Feels Worse Than Being Disliked

I think being misunderstood hurts most when we care deeply about the person doing the misunderstanding.

We want them to know our intentions.

Our reasons.

The parts of the story they can't see.

Sometimes they will. Sometimes they won't.

And perhaps growing up emotionally isn't about learning how to explain ourselves perfectly.

Maybe it's also learning that we can survive being misunderstood.

We can know ourselves even when someone else doesn't.

And sometimes, that's enough.