I don't know you, but I'm rooting for you! You've got this!

Above all, I’m thankful for the clarity that writing for myself first is essential, while sharing it with others remains a gift, not a demand. Here’s to a new year of creating with purpose and authenticity.

Rejections from editors, though challenging, have become the fuel for refining my craft, reminding me that growth comes from perseverance.

5/ Sometimes, peace isn’t in what you say but in what you withhold. This secret return is my way of holding space for stillness, for simplicity. A gift for myself—and maybe for them too, even if they don’t know it yet. #writerslife #PinoyWriter

4/ I imagine knocking on the door of my childhood home. The surprise will come, maybe some hurt too. But love doesn’t always need preparation. It can bloom in the quiet of an unexpected homecoming.

3/ This time, I choose silence over spectacle. By keeping my return a secret, I reclaim control. I’m no longer an event—just a person stepping into the spaces that shaped me, free from the weight of expectations.

2/ In the Philippines, arrivals are events. Relatives swarm the airport, questions fly before hugs land: When did you arrive? Why didn’t you tell us? And inevitably, old misunderstandings resurface.