Safe Haven

Safe Haven

Written by Haven Duddy

Things are not always what they seem.

You’ve heard that before — probably too many times — but I’d like to warn you that it’s true in ways you may never have suspected.

Because even here, in the beautiful, tree-lined calm of Radnor Township — the very picture of safety and perfection — I’ve learned that illusions are masters of disguise.

They look like picket fences and hydrangeas.

They sound like polite laughter and good manners.

They smell like home.

And yet, sometimes what looks like a sanctuary is a maze, and what looks like still water is a mirror hiding its depth.

When I first discovered what I discovered, I realized that perfection itself can be a trap — a lullaby sung by certainty.

It whispers, You’re safe. You know the rules. You’re fine.

But the moment you stop questioning what feels safe, you stop seeing what’s real.

That’s the trick of this world: facts can lie, beauty can bite, and meaning — if ignored — can disappear completely.

If we don’t look for the moral thread that separates right from wrong, light from shadow, we risk mistaking one for the other.

And that’s when the real question appears — the one that haunted me as I began to map the pattern:

Are you living in a nightmare if you don’t know you’re living in a nightmare?

Because that’s the illusion of reality, isn’t it?

You can be surrounded by light and still be lost in the dark.

You can be standing in your own safe haven and never notice the edges cracking.

So this is a story about seeing —

about learning to look closer, past the perfect picture,

to find what’s breathing underneath

After months of internal debate: My answer is no. If you don't know you're living in a nightmare, then you aren't living in a nightmare. But of course, that doesn't mean it's not a nightmare.

or maybe it was how it was supposed to be all along

because when you understand the pattern, the worst things in our life often shape the best things to come.

It's all just beautiful non-sense.

but always your move

Trust is beautiful. Just remember to read the fine print of reality.