Choose the people who help you breathe. Not the ones who hold you under.
It means the opposite of how we use it today. It means the bonds we choose —the covenants we make with friends, lovers, and found family—are actually stronger than the biological ties we were born into. Blood and Water
Because sometimes, blood is exactly what holds you underwater. And sometimes, water is what saves your life. Let’s be honest. Family is complicated. The same people who taught you how to ride a bike might also be the ones who know exactly which buttons to push to make you feel small. The holidays that look like a Norman Rockwell painting from the outside can feel like a war zone behind closed doors. Choose the people who help you breathe
The people who call just to check in. The ones who apologize when they mess up. The ones who see you—really see you—and stay anyway. It means the bonds we choose —the covenants
These are the people who do not owe you a single thing by biology—and yet they show up. They show up at 2 a.m. with soup and a listening ear. They defend you in rooms you aren’t even in. They celebrate your wins like their own, and they hold your hand through the losses that blood relatives couldn’t be bothered to acknowledge.