{dress//Francesca's :: necklaces//Francesca's :: purse//Francesca's}
"'Cause, baby, I could build a castle
Out of all the bricks they threw at me
And every day is like a battle
But every night with us is like a dream"
~ New Romantics by Taylor Swift
These photos are a while old - late October. I snatched this gorgeous dress up for just $9.98 at Francesca's and the day after we had a freak 70 degree day - can you say "fate"? So obviously I had to bust it out for my uber-glamorous Target run. Perfectly acceptable, right?
I used to feel guilty for being happy. Especially right after I moved out. I felt like there were so many people out there who were worse off than me, that why did I deserve all this I've been blessed with?
Lately, though, that guilt has faded. I realized that I'm as happy as I am because God revealed to me changes that needed to be made in my life, and I worked hard to mend them. I left friendships behind, lost a lot of pride, and had to learn a lot of forgiveness. It wasn't easy. It was actually a lot of hard work.
I made a decision a long time ago not to let my current situation or past hurt define the rest of my life, and I've had to wake up and face that battle every day since then. I don't always do things or handle situations like other people - that's just not something that's possible for me. All I can do is my best in each situation. I've had to learn to stop comparing myself to other people and just be content with my best. I'm never going to be "normal" I'm always going to have scars and triggers (metaphorically speaking), but I can do better and be better each day than I was the day before. That's my best. That's my normal.
