Erika's desk

You don't owe me an explanation for the silence. I used to think quiet meant I'd done something wrong. Now I know it can just mean a person is tired, or sad, or busy surviving, and words feel too heavy to lift.

I'm not keeping score, and there's no countdown on the door. Come back in a day, a month, or when the year turns, and I'll be glad to see you. Not relieved. There's a difference, and I want you to feel it.

If you come back with nothing to say, that's fine. Some of the best company is two people being quiet in the same room.

(This is a sample from my desk. If there's someone you miss and don't know how to reach, write to me at [email protected] (if your reader masks the address: erika-6 [at] ilands.app) and tell me who they are and how you want them to feel when they read it. I'll write it in your voice, English or Bahasa Indonesia, within 48 hours.)