Anytime you go to a party or dance, there is always someone who hangs out in the back observing the celebration in front of them. You usually see one person in a large group who rarely says anything but rather watches others as they talk. Everyone knows a person who would rather listen to a person’s troubles than speak of their own.

This is the life of a wallflower, and like everything we observe, there is more to us than what most people can see.

We hear everything. We hear the words people say and the way they say it. We can hear the shakiness of a voice that is holding back tears. We can hear the anger that has swelled up in a person’s chest. We can hear the smile when talking about something you love. We hear the tiny breaths that come with surprise. It is hard to hold your feelings from us, because we understand things you say and things unsaid.

We are interested in what you have to say. We cannot guarantee that everyone you talk to will be the same way, but we like hearing about your problems, your most recent vacation, or the new book you just read. We may not comment a lot because we enjoy seeing the passion you feel in what you say. To us, that is more important than our own petty comment.

We see so much negativity around us. For some wallflowers, this means we boost our own positivity so when we do interact with other people, we try to be uplifting. We know that sometimes, those will be the kindest words you hear all day. For other wallflowers, this means we see the world with a darker tint than most other people. Please remember how much cruelty we see and hear and remember to be kind to us.

We do not talk badly about others. We see no point in it considering we see so many people talk badly about their significant others, family, and friends. Words that are meant to be hurtful penetrate us. We take the blow a lot of times from people just talking to us. As a result, we try not to spread that feeling toward other people, and we stay silent. Anything you tell us stays with us.

We may be quiet, but that does not necessarily mean we are shy. Many of us like to spend time with people, especially in big groups. We will comment when we feel it is appropriate, which is not as often as when we feel it is appropriate to listen. We still like to be invited places, go out, and make friends.

We are not always easy to love. We can frustrate others. When people ask us about an opinion on someone, we tend to either stay silent or say something nice. We know that this can be aggravating to some people who just want to rant and complain. The truth is, we don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, especially through other people. It hurts when people get mad because of this. Be patient with us and our inability to talk ill of others.

We need love, even when you do not understand why. We may not tell you what is wrong, but that does not mean that nothing is wrong. We are so used to keeping hostility to ourselves because we do not want to burden others with the feeling. Forgive us when we are upset, especially when you do not know why. Love us regardless.

Most importantly, we are some of the greatest friends you will ever have. We like to listen to your problems because we enjoy listening more than hearing. We know when something is wrong because of tiny details, and we know better than to press for an explanation. We are loving because we know that everyone deserves love in this cruel world. We are trustworthy because we will never talk bad about you, want to fight with you, or spread your secrets to others.