Expectations Painting

Have you ever loved someone so much that you’d shapeshift into whatever they needed just to keep them happy? Maybe you’ve pursued a career to please your parents, or taken on responsibilities you never wanted just to satisfy your loved ones. Or maybe, like me, you’ve sacrificed your own dreams, standards, and identity to cling to a relationship that only showed you—over and over—that you were with the wrong person.

That last one is my story.

Meet my original painting, “Expectations.” This piece was born after a conversation with my therapist about the unfulfilling relationship I was too scared to leave. I didn’t know who I was outside of it. That’s the terrifying truth about making a relationship—or any person—your entire identity. Every mask I put on to please them killed a little piece of me. I was performing constantly… and still, I was never enough.

This painting is my release, my reflection, and my reminder to never lose myself for someone else’s comfort again.

An original and signed 16 x 20 inch painting made with acrylic paint on a stretched canvas by Serotonin Whitt in 2024.