The sea is loud today Waves are restless,wind is warm against my skin&the sky is almost impossibly blue A few clouds sit on the horizon, just enough to make it look like a painting I’m watching it all as I write this Thinking about how beautiful it is to feel completely present in ur own life I like things that feel natural Chemistry you don’t have to force Silence that isn’t awkward Laughter that arrives unexpectedly Curiosity that grows quietly I don’t believe intimacy begins with taking ur clothes off Sometimes it begins with a conversation Sometimes with a look Sometimes with feeling completely comfortable around someone you barely know And sometimes, it begins with something you can’t quite name A look that stayed a little longer than it should A conversation you didn’t expect That strange feeling of being understood without having to explain everything I’m Irene You don’t have to figure me out all at once I rather like leaving a few things unanswered Come closer if you’re curious

I’ve always felt most like myself in nature. Something about being surrounded by trees, water, wind, open skies… makes everything inside me a little quieter. That’s usually where my best thoughts find me. Where I can reflect, dream, and sometimes feel strangely close to the One who created all of this. It’s also where I feel closest to people I’ve lost, and where I remember the things I still want to build. Painting does something similar. When I have a brush in my hand, my mind finally stops talking. No noise. No overthinking. There’s just me, the canvas, and silence. Music, on the other hand, never leaves me alone. It’s been my companion for as long as I can remember. At work, on the road, at home… there’s almost always a song somewhere.

I love cooking.And eating. 🫣 Probably equally. I feel lucky to live in a time when I can explore so many tastes. I’m curious about almost everything... People, ideas, stories, the strange little contradictions that make us who we are. I’ve always been drawn to psychology and philosophy because I like looking underneath things. What makes us choose what we choose? Why do we repeat certain patterns? What makes us change? Maybe that’s also why I love stories so much. Books and films let us step into lives that aren’t ours, feel things through someone else’s eyes, and sometimes recognize a part of ourselves we hadn’t noticed before. I’ve come to believe that nothing exists completely on its own. Joy makes sense because we know sadness. Comfort becomes precious because we know discomfort. We understand beginnings because we’ve experienced endings. Life seems to speak in contrasts. And perhaps we’re not meant to solve those contradictions, but to learn how to live inside them.

I share little pieces of my life on social media. Come take a peek. 🩷 Instagram: irenehope2020 💙 Twitter: irenehope19