I Don't Prioritize Those Who Treat Me as an Option.

The feeling of being left on the sidelines, of having one's worth diminished in someone's eyes, is a painful echo that we all know. The temptation then arises to erect walls, to apply the cold logic of "I will treat them as they treat me." But this armor, as seductive as it may be, hides a labyrinth of loneliness and the risk of turning us into the very thing that wounds us so deeply.

It is not about denying the pain, but about looking at it with the wisdom of one who understands the complexity of relationships. We need to ask: Are we building self-respect or merely nurturing rigidity?

It is easy to fall into the trap of painting the other person as the villain, of seeing their actions as a direct reflection of our value. We forget that every person carries a universe of struggles, often silent and invisible. The friend who distances themselves, the colleague who ignores us, may be navigating internal storms we know nothing about. Cutting ties without trying to understand is closing doors to alternative endings, to the chance of finding the humanity that resides in everyone.

Human relationships do not follow Cartesian logic. Counting gestures, expecting millimetric reciprocity, transforms love and friendship into mere transactions. This cold and calculating approach traps us in a labyrinth of rigid expectations, where loneliness becomes the price of "justice." And what remains, but an empty echo, the memory that we were right, but terribly alone?

Retaliation, the act of returning coldness in kind, transforms us into a reflection of what hurt us. We build a vicious cycle of contempt, where we are, simultaneously, victim and perpetrator. The subtlety with which we become what we criticize is frightening: we cancel the other before asking "why?", we close doors before understanding the other's journey.

True self-respect lies in the delicate balance between protecting oneself and opening up. It is the ability to set healthy boundaries without isolating oneself in a fortress of resentment. Before cutting ties, let us ask: "Is everything okay?" Before judging, let us remember: "We all carry an invisible weight." And if, even then, reciprocity does not arrive and the relationship remains toxic, let us step away, but with peace, not with bitterness.

We all make mistakes, we all need second chances. Before labeling ourselves as someone's "option," let us breathe, listen, understand. The apparent disregard may hide a silent cry for help, a call for empathy.

Self-respect is not about closing doors, but about choosing which ones deserve to remain open. It is about finding the wisdom to love without losing oneself, to protect oneself without becoming isolated, to remember that, in the end, we are all human, imperfect, and deserving of compassion.