Dare To Be Yourself, There's Nobody Like You

If you are anything like me, you get really frustrated when people tell you that there is no such thing as a perfect life. That there's only death or your own personal hell.

It does not matter how hard you try to create something for yourself, be it a passing grade in school, a successful career, or cooking the perfect omelette right before rushing out the door on your way to work; everyone has their own version of what constitutes an ideal life. The truth is that we cannot reach happiness by chasing perfection because perfection doesn't exist and so achieving it can never satisfy us.

I think that's a lie.

Perfection is actually possible and it doesn't require you to start any old fashion revolution or adopt the ways of an entirely new culture. To reach perfection all you have to do is pick up a pencil, open your notebook, and dare to be yourself; because there's nobody else like you in the entire world. In fact, your life was designed specifically for you. You are beautiful and unique and there is absolutely no one else in this world who can take on your dreams as your own.

What do I mean by perfection? It means living a life that feels right to you. A life that fulfills you at every level; physically, mentally, emotionally, intellectually and spiritually. What is perfect for me may not be perfect for you, but it doesn't matter because we both live in this life. You can't create a life that only you want, which is what we all try to do; be the best at something we hate or chase after something that has no meaning for us.

There is nothing wrong with wanting what you want because it's your life, but being okay with the fact that there are several factors that determine who you were meant to be in this world: Life happens to everybody somehow and everyone has their own version of an ideal life; good or bad, nobody ever regrets doing anything they loved and nobody ever regrets loving who they were meant to love. Try and remember that. One day you will look back at your life and remember all the things that made you happy and you won't regret doing any of them.

In the meantime, live for yourself. Don't live for others. Don't try to fit into anyone else's definition of perfection. Dare to be yourself because there's nobody like you in this world.

~ A.A. Milne (Winnie-The-Pooh)

I figured I'd end this year's article with something completely different than the rest, but at the same time it's exactly what I think about every day. We've been shedding the layers of our past to find out who we are and over the past year I've gotten to know myself on a level that I never thought possible.

Thank you for being here with me on my journey, and I hope that this article finds you in the happiest moment of your day. Best of luck to you all for the coming year!

Title: A New World where I am the Hero (1 year anniversary)

Today is a very special day because it marks an entire year since this blog's creation. It's strange how quickly time passes, but I couldn't be happier with the decision to start this blog and the fact that it has continued to thrive.

To celebrate, I've decided to throw in an extra "article" today. It's really just a continuation of the previous article, but it fills in some of the details that I wish had been included in "Life as a Ghost" and could not have been placed at any other point in time.

The past year was amazing, but it also had some of the most difficult challenges. While they were always my ideas and thus my fault for pushing them so far ahead, there is still that lingering feeling of regret whenever I think back on what happened.

It feels like we should've all been able to see the storm that was about to come, but it wasn't a matter of "if" it would happen; it was simply a matter of "when." As much as I wish that there were some sort of divine intervention by some greater force that kept everyone safe, I know in my heart that God didn't stop me because He only created this world for good things. This is why my faith is so important to me and why I have been given the strength, compassion, and patience to care for those who don't understand or who don't have parents who can help them.

I know that one day I'll be given the chance to help someone who may be in a similar situation as I was, and in that moment I'll feel just a little bit better about what happened. For now, I'll continue to pray for everyone affected by the recent storm, and those affected by old storms that never seem to die down.

Remember this when you are feeling hopeless:

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened." – Dr. Seuss

While this quote is incredibly cheesy, it also tells an important truth: don't be sad that something is over; remember all the good things that came from your experience and smile knowing that it really did happen.

It's okay to move on and find the beauty in everything around you. I know that I will never forget the things that happened to me; they are still with me every day, but I've learned how to put them behind me and walk forward without thinking about what might have been.

With Love,

~ A.A. Milne (Winnie-The-Pooh)

Title: Life as a Ghost – The Storm Cometh (2)

Chapter 7: Life as a Ghost – The Storm Cometh (2)

Chapter 7: Life as a Ghost – The Storm Cometh Part 2/3: Aftermath   *.*  **.** Ever since the day I submitted my last article, I've been waiting for the storm to come. Every time I would hear a car door slam, a voice calling out, or even the sound of my own footsteps echoing in the empty halls of my house, I'd find myself on edge waiting to hear what was happening around me. Even though my friends and family tried their hardest to help me out and distract me from what was going on, it eventually became too much. Life as a ghost had finally caught up with me and I felt trapped in yet another moment of my life that had no real resolution in sight.   *.*  **.

Conclusion

I'll go into more detail in my next blog article, but this is why I did it. I wanted to be in the situation where I knew what it felt like to be held against my will. I wanted to be able to understand and relate with people who had been in these situations before.

I never wanted this article or the experience that came with it to become a way for me to falsely boost my own ego or gain some form of satisfaction from what happened; it just happened.