The Truth Behind the Chaos

Chronicles of the Phoenix · Joel Mark

If you’ve followed the Chronicles of the Phoenix, you’ve seen the debacles, the missed clues, the chaos, the jokes, and the occasional questionable decision-making.

You’ve seen me make fun of myself.

You’ve seen the Phoenix be completely oblivious.

You’ve probably watched a few situations unfold and thought, “How does he not see this?”

Fair.

But beneath all of that, here’s the truth.

I live a fairly public life. A lot of what I do, where I work, what I’m building, and what I’m creating is out there for people to see.

My dating life is different.

I don’t really talk publicly about who I’m interested in, who I’m talking to, or who I may be dating. That is intentional.

Not because I’m hiding anything.

Because the woman I’m with doesn’t automatically sign up for the scrutiny, opinions, assumptions, gossip, or expectations that can come with being connected to someone who lives part of his life publicly.

I’ve been engaged.

I’ve been cheated on.

I’ve loved deeply.

And I’ve experienced a loss that still stays with me years later.

She is literally the reason I have the Phoenix tattoo.

That symbol existed in my life because of her long before it became part of how people know me now. It represents loss, survival, memory, and becoming someone new without pretending the old chapters never happened.

So yes, I’m private when it comes to relationships.

If I’m ever serious about someone, there may be signs. You may notice things. You may even figure it out.

But I probably won’t hand social media a play-by-play.

Whoever I’m honored to date next deserves the ability to be known by me before she is known by everyone else.

She deserves privacy.

She deserves respect.

She deserves the freedom to decide what parts of her life are public and what parts belong only to us.

And yes, I can still be completely oblivious when someone is interested in me.

That part of the Chronicles is unfortunately very real. 😂

But when it comes to the woman I care about, I would rather protect something meaningful than perform it for an audience.

She’ll be known.

Just not necessarily in the way social media tells us relationships are supposed to be known.

Some chapters are meant to be shared.

Others are meant to be lived first.

And yes I’m single!

Originally published on Facebook, September 17, 2026. View the original post.