You can look back now and see how far you’ve come. I want you to remember you have always been able to do that. You have always been an unstoppable ball of forward motion, there have just been times you’ve slowed down. If now is one of those times, have faith that today you are still at least an inch further forward than you were yesterday and that means you are making your way through it, whatever it is.
I know by now you’ve achieved more of those very big dreams. I know you’ve probably added even more of them to the list – things you never knew you wanted until you opened yourself up to the possibility that you could do anything. Anything feels huge and vast and deep and yet I know you’ve filled it up with bright, beautiful things that fill you up with joy and inspiration. You possess the ability to expand outward and fit perfectly into your space. To fill the air with electricity and love. Always do that. Never stop.
I know by now you’ve stopped apologizing. For being brave and bright. For being independent but still vulnerable enough to fall in love. For talking too much, too loud, for having opinions that don’t always fit. For being sensitive enough to have an undying faith in the whole entire world. I know you still believe in the inherent goodness of everyone because you’d never let anyone take that away.
I know you are strong and that you don’t always believe you are strong because someone has told you that to be strong you must be strong all the time. Remember that sometimes the greatest strength we have is our ability to be weak. To need help. To cry when it hurts.
You can look back now and see that you still have no regrets – that every step and misstep carried you here in exactly the way you needed to go. I know you have not always had faith in the journey but the journey has always had faith in you.
Look at all the beautiful things you have created. There is beauty that would not exist in this world if not for you. Any time you are not sure of whether you belong here, remember that you have given things life and those things have brought immeasurable joy to others, have welled their eyes with tears, have moved them when they felt stuck. To at least one person, you have been a saving grace, a lighthouse, a beacon in the darkness. There has never been a better reason to keep shining than that.
(This post was inspired by the Vivid & Brave “Write a letter to your future self” prompt)
Stephanie Ostermann
I’m a communicator. That’s a PC way of saying I like to talk, but I also spend a lot of my time listening, and over the years, I’ve developed a sense for subtext – how one or two words can change your entire message, what people are really trying to say and how to weave the varied layers of your story into one cohesive brand message that your clients fall in love with.
When I'm not acting as editor in chief for Vivid & Brave, you can find me geeking out over words here.
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That was simply beautiful. I have tears in my eyes because the words echoed loudly and I thank you for writing them for others to red or hear. xo
Fan freakin tastic! That was beautiful, eloquent and heartfelt. I am so glad you have picked your pen back up.