You know, for a long time, I just figured people were wired a certain way, and that was that. Didn’t put much stock in all that horoscope stuff. But then, you start living a bit, you see patterns, right? And it got me thinking, especially about some folks I’ve known, including myself at times, and these “Pisces traits” everyone talks about. I started noticing things, not just reading about them, but seeing them play out, clear as day.
I remember this one friend, bless her heart. Always had her head in the clouds. I’d try to talk about something serious, a real problem we needed to fix, and she’d just… drift off. Like, literally her eyes would glaze over, and she’d start talking about some dream she had, or what if things were totally different. It wasn’t about being optimistic, it was like she just couldn’t handle the rough edges of reality. We had this big project at work, a real tight deadline, and she was supposed to be handling a key part. But every time I checked in, she was still “brainstorming,” just kinda lost in a sea of possibilities, but never actually putting pen to paper. It was a whole thing, constantly pulling her back to earth. I was running around, trying to cover her tracks, while she was still picturing the ideal, perfect outcome, ignoring the real train wreck forming.
Then there’s the whole “wearing your heart on your sleeve” bit, but taken to an extreme. I saw it with another buddy, always getting hurt, always feeling misunderstood. He’d give and give, like, really give everything he had, even when people were clearly taking advantage. And when it inevitably blew up in his face, he’d retreat into this shell of self-pity. Not really angry at the people who wronged him, but more just… sad about his own fate. It was like he wanted to be the martyr. He’d rehash every painful detail, over and over, trying to understand why it happened, even when the “why” was pretty obvious to everyone else. It exhausted him, and frankly, it exhausted everyone around him too. You’d try to offer solutions, or just a different perspective, and it was like talking to a wall. He was comfortable in that sorrow, almost. It was a cycle I saw repeat way too many times.
And the decisions, man, the decisions. Or rather, the lack thereof. I’m not talking about big life choices, even simple stuff. “What do you wanna eat?” “Oh, whatever you want, I don’t care.” “No, really, pick something.” “No, you pick.” It felt like pulling teeth sometimes. It wasn’t about being easygoing; it was like a genuine fear of committing to anything, just in case there was a “better” option out there, or in case their choice somehow inconvenienced someone else. I noticed this bled into relationships too. Boundaries were just… not a thing. People would push, and they’d just give way, like water. It led to so much confusion and resentment down the line because they’d suddenly snap, completely out of the blue, because they’d let everything build up. No one saw it coming because they never said “no” in the first place.
I started piecing this stuff together, reading a bit here and there, and suddenly it all clicked. These weren’t just quirks; they were patterns, deep-seated ways of dealing with the world. That intense sensitivity, the way emotions would just wash over them, sometimes making them seem completely overwhelmed and unable to function. It wasn’t always a weakness, sometimes it made them incredibly compassionate, but often it meant they just absorbed everyone else’s energy and feelings, good or bad, and then couldn’t shake it off. One minute they’re super up, the next they’re down in the dumps, and it’s all because of some stray comment or a vibe they picked up from somewhere. It’s wild to witness.
Seeing all this play out, it taught me a lot. It wasn’t about judging, but understanding. Realizing that some folks just experience life through a different lens, a much more emotional, fluid one. They can be incredibly kind, empathetic souls, but those rough edges, the evasion, the overthinking, the emotional whirlpools – they’re real. And navigating that, whether it’s in a friend, family member, or even catching yourself doing it sometimes, that’s the real work.
