This collection of poetry is centred around love & loss. The over 100 poems collected here, 111 to be exact, were written between 2016-2018, capturing moments of my life during this time like a diary: my struggles with BPD, my heart’s desires to be who I want to be, feelings stirred by the relationships I had with others during this time, empty promises made, the pain of love & loss, & the journey of finding myself again after losing myself in someone else. I drew upon imagery that speaks to me to bring these pieces to life: images of the sky, of butterflies, of the sea; images of the sun—rising & setting; & images of light & darkness, of storms & of dreams. I paired these images with the complex array of emotions & experiences of this period in my life: from the desire for connection, unconditional love & acceptance; pleading to be loved the way I loved in return; wanting to believe someone you can’t trust; to the self-hatred, rejection, loss, pain, & grief. These express the way we cut off pieces of ourselves to be loved & accepted. I also drew deeply on my experiences living with borderline personality disorder & how that has impacted my life & my relationships: feeling like this illness betrays you, betrays your heart & soul, your ability to be authentic & genuine, martyring yourself for love, finding your self-worth only to end up sacrificing it for someone else’s approval & most importantly, finally moving on from heartbreak, dreaming of a better future, a future you deserve.