Some of the most powerful things we want to say are to people we can't say them to. Exes we still think about. Crushes we never told. Parents, friends, partners - the words we swallowed instead of speaking.
ReadAndGone gives those words somewhere to go.
The Unsent Letter
There's a whole genre of writing that's meant to be written but never sent. Letters to people who've hurt us, who've left us, who died before we could say what we needed to say.
Therapists recommend it. Writing the thing, even if you never send it, can help you process it.
But there's something unsatisfying about a letter that sits in a drawer or gets deleted. It helps to know that someone, somewhere, actually received your words. Even if it's not the person you wrote them for.
Messages People Share
Love and relationships generate some of the most honest messages on ReadAndGone:
- To exes - Things you never got to say. Things you've thought of since. The closure you didn't get.
- About crushes - Feelings for someone you can't tell, whether they're taken, a friend, or just out of reach.
- Heartbreak - The raw pain of loss, rejection, or endings that didn't make sense.
- Complicated feelings - Loving someone who hurt you. Missing someone you know you shouldn't. The messy stuff.
- Gratitude - Thank yous to people who changed your life, even if you never told them.
- Regret - Things you wish you'd done differently. The one who got away.
Why Anonymous?
Not every message should be sent directly. Sometimes the person doesn't want to hear from you. Sometimes it would cause more harm than good. Sometimes they're just... gone.
Anonymous messaging lets you say the thing without the consequences. You get the release of expression without complicating anyone's life - including your own.
The stranger who reads your message might relate to it. They might carry similar feelings themselves. Your words to one person become words to everyone who's ever felt the same way.
Reading Love Messages
Something happens when you read strangers' messages about love and relationships. You see how universal these feelings are.
The specific details are different - different names, different cities, different circumstances. But the core emotions? Those are the same everywhere. Longing. Loss. Hope. Regret. The ache of missing someone.
Reading these messages can make you feel less alone in whatever you're going through. Someone else has been here. Someone else knows how this feels.
A Note on Closure
Real closure usually has to come from within. No message - even to the actual person - is going to magically resolve complicated feelings.
But writing can help you get there. Putting words to feelings forces you to actually figure out what those feelings are. And releasing them into the world, even anonymously, can be part of letting go.