Desolate and exhausted
Lost and confused
Haven't I been here before?

Sometimes in life, the unexpected arrives quietly and painfully—being accused or blamed for something we did not truly do. Many of us know this experience. The pain that follows is hard to put into words. There is a sudden exposure, a sense of vulnerability, accompanied by shame or guilt—not because we are at fault, but because of how we fear others now see us. It is this fear of perception that stirs the urge to defend ourselves, to explain, or to strike back.