If You Don’t Feel Like You Can Go On, Read This

Dear you,

Yes, you—I see the truth behind your smile. I hear the things hidden behind your laugh.

I know you’ve lost so much. You feel empty, like somewhere along the way you left a part of yourself and now you seem incomplete. You hold on to things that are long gone. You don’t know how to let go. It’s okay.

When night falls, I know your regrets keep you up. Do you play your life over and over again in your head and wish you made different choices? You keep wondering where you went wrong. Sorrow overwhelms you and you don’t even know why anymore. Let me tell you now, it’s okay.

Do you close your eyes sometimes because the pain becomes unbearable? I see you. You try so hard to pull yourself back together. You never ask for help. You’re one of the rare ones who buck up and fix themselves. But sometimes you can’t, can you? It’s okay.

I know life has thrown you so many curve balls. I see how hard you try to deal with all of them. You’re disappointed, I know. You’ve become rough around the edges. You do whatever it takes to keep your head afloat. It’s okay.

It’s okay, because I know that you’ll be okay. You don’t see it, the strength you have, quiet and unrelenting. The things you lost? They taught you to not take anything for granted. Your regrets? They cause you to be wiser. The pain? It made you tougher. All the things you had to go through made you the person you are today.

You’re rough, but your heart is as big as a mountain. You’re exhausted, but you’re stubborn enough to fight your way through everything. You’re fragile, but you’re determined to keep going.

You are so perfectly you.

So the next time life hits you hard, push back. Remember how far you’ve come and how much further you can go. The world needs your light, the kind that’s been through so much darkness but still burns as bright as the sun. I know that someday, you’ll look back on a life so well lived and you’ll realize it was all worth it.