Hold On

Recently, my life has taken a complete 180-degree turn. Three weeks ago, I was on the brink of what I thought was going to be the best summer of my life. I had a great relationship with a guy I loved, an awesome summer job, and a house lined up for the fall. In 6 days, two of those three parts of my life fell apart: I truly thought I was facing a summer alone. (And if anyone knows me, being alone is one of my absolute worst fears.) After two days spent at home, not moving from a couch surrounded by Kleenex, I really thought that my life would never be the same. My brain never stopped running, even when I was sleeping; nothing was good enough to distract me from the terrible week that I had just gone through.
This past week though, I have started realizing what my life was really all about. My job with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society makes me incredibly proud. I am so blessed to have the opportunity to work for an amazing organization with a cause that I truly believe in. The second thing I realized was how incredibly lucky I am to have a family that surrounds me when I need them the most. I spent days at the lake with my grandparents, driving around listening to their stories, laughing, and singing along to the radio with the windows down. I hadn't done that in weeks. And, even though I have struggled with finding true friends, I now know that I have people I can really trust and be honest with...people that will force to me to pick myself up even when I don't want to.
These past three weeks of my life have shown me that when things don't go as planned or one of your worst nightmares comes true, what's most important in the healing process is learning to focus on every positive aspect you have. Even though everything around you might be falling down, pick yourself up...don't pull yourself even deeper into the self-pitying, nose-blowing, and overall depressing rut that is ohhhhh! so tempting to fall into during hard times. The only person that can raise you up is yourself. When things go wrong, focus on yourself-bake a cake, take your dog for a walk, read a great book in the sun, watch a funny movie...do what YOU need. Love yourself, and know that there is a silver lining in every single black cloud that tries to cast a shadow over your life.