In case no one has told you lately...

I want YOU to know...

You are worth SO much more than you can ever imagine.

Trust me.



Few things break my heart more than seeing the friends I love and cherish devalue themselves or become blind to seeing their self worth;  compromising their core because they don't know or see how to change their circumstance, or maybe they don't think about it, it just becomes a 'fight or flight"...

Obviously, I'm not in that situation, but we've all been in and through things that we react first and respond to later, or maybe we don't respond at all, but deep down know we aren't in the right place.

Be strong enough to do what you need to do for you and those you love.
Be strong enough to make the best choices, not the easiest ones.
Be determined enough to pursue those things with complete abandon, regardless of what those around you think.
Do it because it's what is right for you, not just what is right now for you.
Don't sell me on your justifications. If it's the right thing, you won't feel like you have to.
Don't explain them.
DO them.

I don't judge you.
I choose to care.
I choose you to be in my sphere, near or far.
I'm influencing you, and I wouldn't be doing it correctly, or appropriately if I didn't encourage you to CHOOSE YOU!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I have a friend who I know needs to see the above, which was my motivation for writing it.  Who knows, maybe you did, too. OR maybe you have someone who does?  If that's the case, don't be afraid to tell them.

This is what I do know... I struggle with choosing myself ALL THE DANG TIME!
I find myself wanting to choose things for others, and a lot of the time, I end up hurting myself, mentally, emotionally, bad diet, messy house, stress, fitness, other relationships / friendships, etc.

The balance is SO hard to achieve in living a good healthy life, being a good friend, a solid positive influence, and not forget about yourself, without sounding selfish. But I believe that sometimes being selfish is exactly the best thing and can bring some of the best moments, not just for you but for those around you, too.

I've skipped out on invitations to dinners, drinks, bar hops, out of town trips, concerts, painting classes, all kind of fun things, and made choices that were better for me, and thus allowing me to be better for my friends.  Sometimes there are those that don't understand it, and for them, well, their loss, honestly.

So don't forget to take care of yourself and in doing so, you'll help take care of those around you.