What No One Saw

From the outside, it looked simple – a sign in the window, a final sale, lights turning off.

But that wasn’t the story.

Behind those moments were months of quiet negotiations, sleepless nights, and the slow unravelling of something we’d built with our hands.

Every decision felt heavier than it looked on paper.

We kept working, smiling, showing up — even as the ground shifted beneath us.
What people saw was a store winding down.

What they didn’t see was the effort to keep its dignity intact, to end with care instead of collapse.

There’s a kind of strength in staying calm while everything tilts. That’s the part most people never notice.