This year I learned to never fall in love with a stranger
I learned that they will steal your heart, and break it
That not everyone is going to be sensitive to your feelings and that what you have…is usually the only thing that they want
Because of course you have something that they want, and they will tell you any and everything that you want to hear to get it
This year I learned how to respect myself
I learned that in order to become what I need to become I will have to face my demons and beat my insecurities at their own game
Because of course it is easy to fall, you have gravity there to assist with that, but of course once you do
You then will have to prove to yourself that you were not lying when you said that you are strong enough to overcome whatever is thrown your way, by getting up
This year I learned that it is okay to hurt
I learned that the pain is only temporary and sometimes it is needed
Regardless of what brought about that hurt you learned something from it, and that was far more important than the person who caused it
This year I learned that writing is my safe place
I learned that it is what that is keeping me grounded
The things that I do not think matter has an impact in some form or fashion…hell it literally saved my life
If I never have the chance to write that one poem that impacts the minds of the unmotivated I will know that I did in fact touch ground
I challenged myself in many ways
Lived life although not to the fullest but to a place to where someone was able to continue on
Found comfort in my own skin, felt the sand in between my toes and allowed the sun to kiss my skin far more than some
Buried my pride and raised my love and learned to appreciate every imperfection that makes me into the man that I am today
I learned that in the end it is all about me and no one else
Because of course the world will try to mode you into whatever it thinks you need to be
But it is up to me to decide if it is worth the cost of not becoming someone great and truth be told
It isn’t