The Only Certainties I’ve Found in a Life Full of Maybes

10 Things I Know For Sure (Even If Everything Else Is Uncertain)
By the Author of Diary of Clichés

I used to think certainty came from success — from ticking boxes, hitting milestones, collecting approvals like merit badges. But the older I get, the more I realize that certainty doesn’t come from the outside. It’s grown, slowly, awkwardly, from the cracks life carves into us.

Here are 10 things I now know — for sure:

1. You can survive things you once thought would destroy you.
   Heartbreak. Failure. Loss. Even the day you couldn’t get out of bed. You’re still here — maybe bruised, but wiser.
2. People reveal themselves through their silences as much as their words.
   I’ve learned to listen to what’s not said — the delayed replies, the evasive glances, the carefully curated truths.
3. Your gut knows before your brain can explain it.
   I’ve talked myself out of so many instincts. Now, I listen. I trust the flutter, the tightness, the sigh.
4. Growth is not linear — and healing is messy.
   There’s no neat chapter where everything is fixed. Life isn’t a spreadsheet. It’s a scribbled-up diary — and sometimes that’s the beauty of it.
5. The “clichés” are often where the truth lives.
   I used to roll my eyes at “let it go” and “this too shall pass.” But when I finally let them land? They cracked something open. That’s how Diary of Clichés was born — from the things I thought were cheesy but turned out to be life-saving.
6. Saying ‘no’ is a complete sentence.
   You don’t owe explanations when protecting your peace.
7. Love — the real kind — is quiet, consistent, and freeing.
   Not performative. Not confusing. And definitely not something that makes you question your worth.
8. You are allowed to outgrow people, places, and versions of yourself.
   Evolution is not betrayal. It’s biology. It’s soul preservation.
9. You don’t have to turn every experience into a lesson.
   Some things just hurt. Some things just happen. Not everything is content.
10. You are enough — especially when you stop trying to be.
    The most profound certainty I carry is this: when I stopped performing perfection, I found my voice. And when I started writing Diary of Clichés, I realized I wasn’t alone.

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I don’t have all the answers. But I do have these truths, carved out from detours and detachment, healing and humor. And maybe, if you sit with your own contradictions long enough, you’ll find your 10 too.

You don’t need a perfect life to feel certain.
You just need your story — in your words.
And a willingness to begin.

Diary of Clichés is where I began. Maybe it’s where you’ll begin too.