You dont know what i do;
yet
you judge so harshly,
the version if what you believe to be my life,
you cause yourself pain and heartache instead of being open and willing to listen and learn. You fabricate your version of me without being willing to have a conversation to learn the truth of who I am and why I make the decisions you demonize.
You may not like what I do,
and thats okay,
you dont have to. No one is devalidating your feelings.
But you cant guilt people into doing the things you want. You cant threaten with not being able to see you again just because someone has made a decision that you arent happy with. Your self image should not be so deeply dependent on me and my choices.
I am not a reflection of you.
I dont have to be, I am not a mirror.
I am my own complex human.
Sometimes I make mistakes, but from those I learn, and I should not be guilted into making decisions or not making decisions. I should not be denied life experience simply because of your feelings.
The choice to stand my ground and continue to do what I have done for my source of income is my decision alone. And it is not a decision I am ashamed of. I have gained far more than I have lost.
I have not lost dignity.
I have not lost self worth.
I have not lost self respect.
I have gained more of those things than when I spent my hours making someone else money to throw me change in comparison.
I have gained the ability to set boundaries,
The ability to tell people no,
I have learned the art of self respect and honor in not compromising my desires and my comfort for others.
Ive learned to put myself first.
I have the freedom of time, I am the owner of my own life.
I have no place I need to be any certain time of day, I have the freedom to go anywhere I please when I please.
I have the ability to invest my hours creating art and doing things I love with this freedom.
I have the ability to invest time in new friendships and in the relationships I have already established with this freedom.
I am solely responsible for my income, which can be stressful at times sure, but worth the freedoms I get in return.
I have learned how to manage my time.
I have learned how to love myself.
I have learned how to respect myself.
I am in control of how I am seen.
I was sexualized before I had a clue what it was. I was catcalled out of car windows by the time I was 11. I was sexualized more as a minor than I have been as an adult.
But now, I am in control of that perception.
Sure people might judge or ridicule what I do, but I feel the same I have always about it: If they are going to be hateful and judge me, those arent people I would want to have in my life anyway.
Im not hurting anyone.
All of my work is legal.
I pay taxes.
More often than not I play therapist for people who are lonely and just need to feel like they matter to someone. This work isnt easy, but it is work, and its honorable in its own right.
I am happy.
I am healthy.
I am loved.
Thats what matters most.
—lexy nicole
Flommist Lexy Nicole is a model, musician, and writer. Copyright © 2022 Lexy Nicole.
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