not a cookie cutter girl.

A lot of times in my life I have felt VERY out of place. It's a continual feeling I am overwhelmed with. I am so grateful for who I am and that's partially due to the way I was raised and my parents. However, there is something about myself and my sister that sets us apart definitely from people in our age range, but also from just people in general. Maybe this is the reason why I am the nicest person to pretty much everyone and am so willing to help others out, yet I hardly have any friends. I've been used to this though ever since about middle school. I am not some awkwardly social or extremely unfriendly, rude, and careless person. I don't know what exactly it is about my sister and I that makes us so different. Well I could list off the aspects that make us different, but I don't completely know why. I honestly feel like I'm not from this place at times, as crazy as that may sound I feel it's true. I feel a huge disconnect from everyone else. Everyone seems to have the same lifestyles, same beliefs, same type of friends, same personalities, same habits, same addictions, and even the same paths that they follow.

Over the past few years especially more so recently, I have really thought about all this. It's like society creates this idea of how we should be in life. Girls should want to be married with children by mid-twenties, taking care of a husband, cleaning the house, hardly making any money or just being a stay at home mom because "you've got a man you can depend on financially & emotionally" (until  he cheats on you or you divorce), get nails & hair done at least 2 times a month, have lots of shopping trips so you can buy the most up to date trending items out there, and so on. It's like it's supposed to be a destiny for all girls/women to want to have children and feel like that's their "duty in life". They are expected to desire and love those children before they are even born. Now, I'm not saying I wouldn't be a great parent because I know for sure I would be. Like I said, I am very loving and take care of people I am hardly close to, so imagine how I am with those who I am close with. I would do EVERYTHING in my capability to give my child/children the best and most stable life possible. Yet, I hardly have the desire to have children. Is that a problem because I'm a girl? When most women look at pictures of babies or talk about their future wedding plans they get so excited or "ooh" and "ahh". I'm more like "ehh whatever cool". Leila and I have talked about this before and about why we are like that. We aren't really sure why, but it's just how we feel. We are young for crying out loud, why should that be our focus anyway?

Do I need to be this cookie cutter way to have a complete and fulfilling life? Do I need to have a extreme desire to want that life?

I'm just tired of girls being pitiful, weak, dependent (especially just on a man) and cookie cutter like because then there are girls like me who don't fit that at all in my opinion. 

One BIG example I hate is when girls complain (not going to use the original word that came to my mind) about how "guys should pay for everything on a date". Ok really?! I think things should be done equally in a relationship. Here's an idea, perhaps try alternating who pays on a date! I also hate when men & women do different "gendered" tasks such as women clean the house, take care of kids, and cook dinner while men just do yard work and make the majority of money for the family. Another thing that I think should be done equally and in an alternating manner or even done together. Is that too crazy of an idea?

I've said this before, but my main goal in life is to be COMPLETELY dependent upon myself in all ways of life. I want to have people there for me if I do ever need them (like my family), but I want to achieve that. My accomplishments in life will mean so much more when I can look back and say "Look what I did!" (key word 'I'). 

I don't need someone to help me unpack at my apartment, I don't need someone to open the car door for me, I don't need someone to walk me back to my place, I don't need someone to pay for me. I appreciate your concern, but I GOT IT!

So to sum this rant all up, I just think in the end it feels so much better if you can reflect upon yourself and your actions and be proud of what YOU did and what YOU accomplished and who YOU truly are.

decisions, decisions.

I just read some of my past blog posts and saw the post that I discussed how I don't know where I'll be after I graduate, what I'm going to do, and how I am going to deal with leaving UWG. I literally started this week not feeling like myself, feeling down, feeling alone, feeling so confused with what to do & making decisions. I try to compose myself and not breakdown emotionally as much as I used to, but I seriously broke down in tears earlier in the week because of how I felt. Then things flipped on me.
Within one conversation on one day this week with people from my on campus job, I had a spontaneous decision to apply to grad school at UWG for a degree in Professional Counseling with a focus on College Student Affairs. It sounded like a great opportunity, I had some great people really routing for me and supporting me, and it could open so many more doors for me. It's overwhelming in SO many ways because I hardly ever make spontaneous decisions and I mean EVER. I like to think things through for quite a while, but this just sounded like a good fit for me. Plus, I just applied. I still have to get accepted and actually confirm that I want to do this for sure. However, it's still exciting and it got me to thinking about how it's so weird to look at how we get to a certain point in our lives.
It's like a ripple affect. One thing can affect another even if it's the smallest aspect. One decision can lead to so many other outcomes. My big example that came to mind is the fact that I'm at UWG. To be honest, I really didn't know much about UWG. The reason I came is somewhat embarassing, even though I would have never said this a few years ago. So maybe I didn't necessarily come for the right reasons, but I can truthfully say coming here was one of my greatest decisions along with a few other ones I have made. I feel that I've accomplished so much while here and grown so much. So if I do continue to be here for 2 more years, then I can enjoy that decision I made back in 2008 even more. It sure would be nice to not have to say good-bye for good in April, so I think this is a good idea.
Also, just want to say thank you again to the people who were so supportive, kind, helpful, and encouraging. I am honestly so grateful to know you all & be around you. It makes me feel so great that people believe in me and want me to do so well and can see all my potential.  I promise I won't disappoint. It's not an option for me. :)

Healing vs. Coping

It's been quite a while since I've wrote a blog because I've been extremely busy & stressed. So this topic has been on my mind lately...healing vs. coping. Sometimes I feel like everything is fine and I wonder if that is because I'm so busy I don't have time to think about how I really feel. Then there's those times that I have a quick panic moment where I just want to break down because I'm SO confused. Then other times I just don't care either way anymore because I can only control so much in my life. I can only put in my efforts and reach my personal goals that I have control over. In the past few months I've had this sense of empowerment especially if you look at my last blogs, but my thoughts recently have made me question how I really feel. Am I really healed or healing? Maybe somewhat. Will I ever be completely healed? No, most likely I will never be completely healed. Think of it like this...after I got in a big car accident in 2009, I asked my dad if I would be able to keep my Honda Accord. He told me that even if it got repaired & was drivable, it wouldn't ever be the same because the engine and all the parts were shaken up. The only real way to resolve that issue was for me to get a new car. I feel the exact same way. Although I can be "repaired" somewhat, I'm always going to have that heartbreak as a part of me sadly. As much as I want to deny that I'm going to be scarred for my whole life, I just know how I am. My heart and mind have both been shaken up just like my Honda was. The difference is I can't replace my heart or mind or be a whole different me. It just doesn't work that way.
So am I really healing? Or am I just learning how to cope really well?
I have a lot of strength as I've mentioned before and I'm typically pretty optimistic/positive. I try so hard to keep pushing forward on my own. I look to myself for encouragement and motivation. That strength is the reason I'm able to cope. I've just learned to deal with it. I've learned to accept it. I've learned to acknowledge that certain aspects of my life most likely won't turn out how I would like, so I've just chosen to focus on aspects that I know I can control. I'd rather face the reality now than 10 years from now have it hit me and then feel worse about it. However, it still hurts which is why I don't think I'll ever heal. I hate that, but I am serious when I say I try so hard to completely look past it all. It's more complicated than you'll know.
So don't think that I'm being some pessimist; I am just trying to be real with myself. I know that things will be "okay" since I've learned to cope and get on with other things in life that make me happy, but a piece of me will always be scarred, torn, heartbroken, shattered, or some other similar word. I know things will be "okay", I'm just coping with the fact that I have to accept that certain things aren't going to turn out how I imagined or how I'd like for them to be in my life.

100% on the right path.

On my 22nd birthday (last Sunday), I was outside with my dad as he did yard work. We had an interesting life conversation and I seriously love having those times with him. I enjoy just being able to talk to him alone about life and hearing his advice. Even though I disagree with him about a few things and sometimes don't understand him, I still have learned so much from him. We talked about the future, relationships, getting married, being in college, careers, decisions, money, having kids, and about being successful. It makes me extremely happy when he tells me that I'm "100% on the right path" and that he knows I'm going to be succesful in whatever I do.
Sometimes people just say that to make people feel like they can get somewhere in life, but not everyone has the determination to be successful in ANYTHING they do. My dad sees my drive, determination, & positive attitude. He knows that whatever I do and whatever I'm passionate about, I put all my effort into it. I don't give up easily if at all. Another thing is, I feel like he is right about it. I just know that my strength and drive will get me there. Not everyone is as motivated as me, so that's how I know it's so very possible.
I'm a realistic person. I set reasonable, yet challenging goals and I work so hard to do all that I can to meet or exceed those goals. I really will not settle for less when I know I can do so much better and set my expectations for myself so high. I know that my hard work that has made me who I am and where I am will definitely pay off. I honestly just have that gut feeling. I don't see failure as an option for me even if things do ever go sour. I'm on the right path & I just know it.
"If the grapes don't sell, I dry 'em up & sell raisins"--P$C (I'm a King)

I am so thankful for who I am and for the values that I've been taught. It's all going to take me so far. :)

"Ability may get you to the top, but it takes character to keep you there"-John Wooden

"I'm the diamond in the dirt that ain't been found"-50 Cent (Many Men)

One Path.

I have been thinking lately about how there are basically infinite options and pathways in life, but we personally will only know the one we chose to go on. I seem to find myself saying, "what if I had done this differently" or "what if this didn't happen, where would I be?", etc. It seems like a lot of people go through points in their life where they question "what if?" and the thing is we will probably never know the answer to those "what if?" questions because they are just hypothetical. I have been trying to avoid thinking like that because there is really nothing I can do to change the past (to my knowledge at least). It's just very mind boggling to think that one small detail in our life could have a ripple effect and change our path in life completely. Maybe that's why I am so indecisive in most situations. I almost always have to weigh out the pros and cons and make sure I'm set on a decision before I make it. This holds true for things on a small scale to a much larger scale. I don't want to regret my decisions, so I take a long time to decide upon things.
I'll never know what could have been if I went to a different college or if I had said something differently or if I decided to turn left instead of right while driving lost. It bugs me that I'll never know, but I just have to live with it and always think about my actions & decisions.

I also notice how so many people take the path most traveled and then have to learn from big mistakes (whcih turn into regrets) that they made while traveling that path. They could have looked at the people who made mistakes before them: friends, family, etc. If you see the mistakes of those people and know that you don't want to end up the way they ended up, then why would you follow them? Why would you take the same path to basically the same fate?
I guess I just have a much different mindset than most my age. I always am thinking, if/when I were to have kids, would I want to tell them "don't make the mistakes I made" or would I want to tell them "do what I did"? I'm not saying I would tell them to follow my every move, but I mean "do what I did" as in stay true to yourself, stay out of trouble, do good in school, do your best, be a good person in various aspects of life, and so on. If you don't want to tell your kids, "don't do what I did", then why are you doing that stuff now? It's sad because some people will never learn until they face the consequences of their actions and sometimes that's still not enough. I don't need to make the mistake to learn from it, I've seen many others make the mistakes and I've learned by saying I DON'T want to be where they are.

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.