How to Hug a Porcupine
hugging the unhuggable
Loving me isn’t easy, I’m still hiding behind the walls that I put up, the defenses I built, and the sharp edges that keeps people at a distance. I’ve often felt like a porcupine — covered in quills that always prick anyone that gets too close to me, Yet somehow, you’ve managed to hug me anyway.
it takes a special kind of person to love someone who’s difficult to love
You value the parts of me that others shy away from — the scars, the fear, the insecurities that makes me push people away. You’re not scared when I bristle, you don’t retreat when I lash out. Instead, you treat me with patience, understanding that behind my quills is someone who’s just scared of being hurt.
Loving a porcupine means that you are accepting the prickly parts without taking them personally. It means understanding that the sharpness isn’t aimed at you, but is a reflection of past wound that haven’t fully healed.
You’ve shown me that true love isn’t deterred by a few scratches; it’s persistent, compassionate, and willing to endure the pain for the sake of connection.
There are days when I wonder why you stay, why you continue loving me despite the difficulties. But then I realized that you look at me more that just the quills. You also see moments of softness, those times when I allow myself to let you in. You see what kind of person I am beneath the defenses — the person who longs to be loved but doesn’t always know how to accept it.
you’ve taught me that love isn’t just about embracing the easy parts; it’s about standing by someone through their struggles, even when it’s hard.
You made me feel that I don’t have to be perfect to be loved, that I don’t have to hide my sharp edges to deserve affection. In your arms, I’ve found a place where I can be myself, and still be cherished.
Hugging a porcupine is challenging. There are times where I know I hurt you, even when I don’t mean to. But instead of pulling away, you stay. You understand that my prickliness is just a defense mechanism, not a reflection of how I feel about you. And because of that, you made me believe that maybe, just maybe, I am not as hard to love as I once thought.
In your love, I’ve found a kind of acceptance that I never thought possible.
Thank you for hugging this porcupine. Thank you for seeing beyond the quills and loving the person underneath. You made me believe that I can be both prickly and loveable, that I don’t have to change who I am to deserve your affection. Because of you, I learned that even a porcupine can be hugged — and that sometimes, those hugs are the ones that matter the most.
