Cherish your solitude
Take trains by yourself
To places you have never been
Sleep alone out under the stars
Learn how to drive stick shift
Go so far away that you stop being afraid of not coming back
Say no when you don’t want something
Say yes when your instincts are strong
Even if everyone around you disagrees
Decide whether you want to be liked or admired
It’s easier to be mean than smarter
Decide if fitting in is more important
Than finding out what you’re doing here
Believe in kissing
Fight for tenderness
Care as much as you do
Cry as much as you want
Insist the world be better
Ask yourself these questions:
Why am I whispering when I have something to say?
Why am I apologizing every time I express my needs?
Pretending it doesn’t mean that much to me?
Why am I waiting?
Pining?
Fitting in?
You know the truth:
Sometimes it does hurt that much
But you can still feel love
.

- Eve Ensler (American playwright, performer, feminist and activist, best known for her play The Vagina Monologues)

Strange how that words, from the creator of the V-Day, the global movement to stop violence against women and girls, and targeted to women, ring a bell. certainly true for men too…