I have never felt stronger about independence until I took a
leap and United Airlines 2,360 miles and planted myself in Los Angeles,
California from the small town of Boyertown, Pennsylvania. Do not get me wrong,
I have always felt myself to be self-sufficient and independent: started
working when I was 14 years old, relied on myself to carry my own burden of
emotions as well as help others push through their own. However, independence took
on an entirely new meaning for me when I learned to build a new life for
myself, completely starting over. It’s amazing to me that I hear “I can’t
believe you did that.. you’re so brave!... good for you... I could never do
that”. I literally just think to myself: ‘well why not?’ I honestly believe
that more people should do it. Yes, I am talking to the young souls who feel
trapped in the circumstances that they find themselves simply because
comfort and fear hinder them from reaching out. However, I see too many
people unhappy in the predicaments they live in, and do nothing about it. I
wish you understood that no matter how old you are, your happiness plays the
largest role in the success of your life. At any moment that you don’t favor
the way things are going for you, only you have the power to change that. I
never realized how strong I really was until reality slapped me in the face and
I had to learn to adapt to the lack of comfort I had immersed myself in; because
growth and comfort cease to exist in the same location. It wasn’t until I stood
face to face with who I really was to be able to begin to produce my own
meaning to my life, instead of live the way I was told I was supposed to. If a
genie was here to grant me three wishes, my biggest wish would be that people weren’t
so afraid to face themselves head on in order to construct themselves and to
find the power we hold within ourselves to love the flaws that bloom to growth,
because there is so much more to learn about ourselves than what we realize
this very moment. This giant move across the United States has not been a cake
walk and circumstances were not ideal at first, but I am forever grateful for
the love and support I received across the country and within my own, new home
while I struggled to remember the person I truly was, and that is something I
will never take for granted. I know that there is purpose in the mayhem, but
the best part of that journey is learning to maneuver through it, coming out
strong, and looking back excited to venture through the next obstacle that
comes my way, rather than run or hide from it, because the only way to realize
your true character is to immerse yourself into a place where all you must rely
on for your soul to survive is you, because no one knows it true but you, and
no one can push through it for you. I will forever hold on to the true love I have
experienced during this journey and continue to radiate that love on to you as I
continue to bloom into the person I am meant to be. My second wish is that I am
able to touch a few souls and change a few lives in the name of love, glimpsing
back on where I started, with a clear vision of the endless possibilities of
where we can all go, together. That individual journey is solely independent,
but no one must walk it alone. My third wish is for you not to think a huge
move is going to help you find your way to you. I wish for those to realize
that it is okay to take a stand and change the way you are living if it comes
to the expense of your overall wellbeing. You cannot help others until you
learn to help yourself, first. And, that is okay. If no one has told you today,
or any day, or maybe they have, but you do matter. People DO matter. Regardless
of your circumstance, your past, your upbringing and your flaws, you do matter
more than enough to take a stand for your happiness. Oh, and for the boys of
One Direction to stop messing around making music solo dolo and just produce it
together because I know it’s what we all want. Today’s takeaway: never forget
who you are and everything that got you to this very moment, but do not dwell
in the past. Never ever stop believing in yourself because better days have yet
to come, and today doesn’t seem like a bad place to start, right?
We are currently living in a world where we have become so consumed by instant gratification that we neglect to understand the true cost of obtaining our daily luxuries. People seem to be worried about getting to the next location without ceasing to live in the current moment and appreciate where they are, that there is no thought to the harm that their daily interactions with the earth are truly causing. To live Eco-friendly, you are choosing to live with the intention of making a positive impact in the environment around you through your daily interactions with the world to protect the natural capacity we call home as well as the living beings who inhabit it. Current events are the prime example of the situational outcome when negligence to view all people as human beings may be the most harm we could produce on this planet. And here is why: The fashion industry is the number two largest polluter in the world, closely tailing behind the oil industry. Fast fashion has become a fa...
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