I should be dead. It’s really that simple. By the time I was 14, I had been depressed, suicidal, participated in risky behavior, almost drowned and was grabbed seconds before being run down by a speeding SUV. The fact that I’m alive is both a miracle and a blessing. I’m convinced that I am here for a purpose. I didn’t survive just to get to this point to perish.

What about you? What have you survived? Have you taken the time to realize how precious your gift of life is? Have you taken the time to celebrate just how far you’ve come? So many people didn’t make it to where you are. So many people didn’t escape the horrors you escaped – they didn’t win the fight. You’re here. You are alive. That in itself is a celebration. I applaud you.

Maybe you don’t feel excited about your survival. Maybe you don’t share my excitement over all that you’ve overcome. Can I encourage you to try something new?

1. Celebrate you every day, all day. Celebrate the small things. Try literally writing yourself a celebratory letter.

2. Accept the unfavorable, painful and regrettable. You will never feel better, stronger and more in control until you walk / operate in truth. Admit the things that you are running from. Accept that you made mistakes. Accept the fact that you were used and taken for granted. Accept your truth. Truth has weight. Accepting truth will ground you and focus you, giving you strength you never knew you had.

You possess the ability to see life as the gift that it is. But you have to want to see it. You have to want change. You have to be ready to do whatever it takes to take back control over your life – your mind, your destiny and your happiness. Are you willing? Follow the first two steps above and you are on your way.

Hope Always,

💜Missy