Nakedpursuit
Danielle is a graduate of Politics and International Relations. In an ongoing battle against burnout and the loss of appetite for liberal arts while working in big corporate, she writes ultra-personal essays that have no use to anyone besides the preservation of her own sanity.
Recent posts
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On nostalgia - for places, and the versions of ourselves that existed there
I’ve been meaning to write at length about my time in Europe in a way that does not reduce some of the most revolting months of my adult life into a mere escape from heartbreak. What I discovered about myself is that I tend to fixate on one thing and overestimate its impact on my life. This is certainly the case for most of my previous retelling of last year. But I have since learned that my year …
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As I March into the life I prayed for
April 6, 2026 Could it be true that sorrow breeds creativity and happiness suppresses the genius? I started writing this piece on the 2nd of March, and the title itself is a dead-giveaway of the kind of time I’m having- a pretty good one. I say the first statement because despite multiple attempts to sit down and finish this essay within the same month, nothing more than a few sentences and maybe …
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How NOT to survive your first heartbreak
one day, when you’re 22, just as the world starts to go back to normal after almost two years of covid lockdown and when everyone is excited to finally be allowed to have a life again, you will develop a crush on someone who goes to the same gym as you. whatever happens, do not tell your new friend who went to high school with his brother about it, and when he refuses to meet you because someone e…
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Day and Night
“I knew that was rocky-road, I just didn’t say anything. Only rocky-road has marshmallows like that.” I whispered while putting a wooden scoop of dark chocolate, marshmallow, and roasted pecan in my mouth, after the waiter corrected himself that it was, in fact, not chocolate ice cream. The hotel cafe provided the usual pleasantries you would expect from one- cool air-conditioning, soft jazz, fanc…
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There is certainty in not rushing
“I like you.” He finally managed to get the words out after a couple minutes of mulling it over. It felt like hours for two people as eloquent as us. “I know”, all I said in return. Because I do. His eyes beat him to that declaration. That morning, during one of our phone calls that always last too long to allow a healthy sleep schedule, I asked him what he thought my red flag is. “You cut off peo…
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There is someone I'm interested in who happens to be the perfect gentleman
Have you ever met someone who is exactly your type? Once upon a time, I had the lovely pleasure of meeting a guy who is intelligent, athletic, sensitive, tall and ridiculously handsome all at once. He writes poems and asks for handwritten letters as gift (where I saw everyone else ask for a gift card), he remembers the wine I asked about exactly once months prior, and he always has a comeback that…
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3-Month Check-In
My relationship ended on the 20th of March, I left for Vilnius on the 20th of April, came back to Manila almost on the same day in July, and moved to my new place exactly 1 month later. Since Q1, the 20th day of the month has consistently marked something important. Today, I am back home for 3 months, the same amount of time I was gone, 2 months of which I’ve already spent living in this little ho…
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Conversations between ‘my selves’
I’ve sat with myself for three long months, including the most mentally challenging weeks I’ve ever seen as an adult. Myself and I, we’ve had many conversations between us. About who we were, who we are, and who we’re working toward becoming. Lucky are those who have always known who they wanted to be. I have met few such people in my life, the most remarkable being my best friend from college. As…
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For when the pin lands in the past
A couple of weeks before leaving Vilnius, I found myself cloaked in quiet but persistent anxiety about my imminent move back home. I was doing well, moving through a rhythm I had carved out, gently maximizing the time and space I had left of my summer in Europe. Part of me recognized the temporariness of that setup (which was why I had my guard halfway up the entire time), but I was more than happ…
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How fake news is keeping you from the life you deserve
Consciousness about the quality of life I’ve experienced in Europe over the last few months is often accompanied by uncontrollable, mostly unwelcome enlightenment about the direct correlation of individual life quality and politics at large. Consequently, I began to realize why fascist leaders weaponize systematic misinformation and emotional manipulation as the primary means of suppression. Misin…
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On filling my own cup, and the inelegant process of making this decision
"I'm not really interested. I think I'm getting comfortable filling my own cup." One Saturday night, on a trip outside of Vilnius, after a long train ride and many hours of walking, one of my colleagues (who was the first person I told about my breakup after arriving in Europe) asked if I plan to start dating again once I return to Manila. I have about two weeks left of my three month secondment, …
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How reading turned me into an empath
My history with reading One summer as a teenager, when my mom was out of a job and money was tight, I picked up a very inexpensive hobby: reading. I would go to a relative’s house and use their wifi to download free e-books to my beat-up school tablet. I remember lying on the tile all night reading (it was summer, we could not afford to use AC, and the floor was cold), barely noticing the sun comi…
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Misconceptions on healing, among other things
When people talk about healing, I picture bubble baths, quiet night runs, candle on the nightstand while reading a Thought Catalog piece about waking up one day and realizing you are okay. A haircut maybe, for good measure. No one warned me about the sleepless nights when I would play the same grueling scenarios in my head a thousand times, knowing it wouldn’t change anything. That there is no ang…
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"That's because you were loved and supported as a child,"
Some time ago, a few friends and I were talking about poor relationship choices, and how they believe it is linked to an individual's childhood and upbringing. With a hint of arrogance, I said, "Wala din naman akong dad, but I don't make poor choices with boys." To which one of my friends replied, "That's because you were loved and supported as a child, sis." Something about that comment stuck wit…