Happy Wednesday everyone and welcome back to my blog – I hope you are well!
Tonight’s post is something a little different but it’s a topic that I feel we need to talk about, especially since lockdown because we’ve all had chance to sit down and really think about life and what we are grateful for. There are so many people that say life is like school, in the sense that we are continuously learning from our experiences, and this allows us to develop as individuals. The more open we are to life, the more we can learn from it and it can help us in the future.
There are some lessons that we learn during the course of our lives which are so important and for each of us, but they will differ from person to person. When I thought about doing this blog post, I thought it was going to be soooo hard to think of answers – I was sat thinking about particular subjects I’ve learnt about rather than actual LIFE lessons; however, once I got into the swing of it, I was thinking, okay, yeah I can do this…. I’ve come on leaps & bounds AND I have learnt so much along the way!
Here are some of my life lessons:
It’s okay to cry
This is a lesson I learnt from not doing what it says. I used to hold back my tears, thinking that it made me stronger because I didn’t show I was sad. However, I have since realised that the statement ‘Tears do not equate to weakness’ is so so true – why should we always have to ‘pull’ ourselves together? If I want to cry, I will cry. I have learnt to stop telling myself to hold back the tears, it shows people I am only human. Tears are a symbol of strength.
Positivity is the way forward
By now, I’m hoping you all know how positive I am. This isn’t something that was easy… when I was going through my ‘teenage’ years, I was soooooo mardy (as expected) BUT thankfully, I have come out the other side with a completely different outlook, with a very positive twist!! I always try to see the positive in things, even if it’s the most negative situation.
Don’t give up
One main lesson I have learnt is not to give up! Keep going even when you think you can’t. So many of us have dreams & aspirations, always remember that the only thing getting in the way between you and your dream is yourself. I’ve always said that if I could say something to my younger self it would be to never give up. This lesson was and still is huge for me – I realised that I just have to keep trying and pushing and struggling, even at times when I didn’t know what my goal was or why I wanted to achieve it.
Everything happens for a reason
Okay okay, you all know I am a big believer in this and I was only 14/15 years old when this proved true and since that time, it has proved to be right on many occasions and I am almost sure I am not the only one that thinks that. There are reasons why things happen to you and for me, everything happened at the right time and for the right reasons. When I didn’t get the right grades to go back to school, I ended up going to college – my college years were the best years, I was happy, I enjoyed learning (for once!) I made new friends, my confidence grew, I found my smile…. When things like this happen, it’s nature’s way of chipping away at us in an attempt to improve our lives. You have to turn the mess into a message – at the time it may be hard, but in my situation, the message was to learn to be independent and separate from my friends to become more confident.
Being different is better than fitting in
In my life, I have also learnt that being different & unique is much better than following the crowd. When I was at school, I wished I had better hair, a better figure, better teeth etc… how silly was I thinking all of that? I look back and think about how much I encourage people to be themselves, be true to who they are and to love yourself – yet 7 years ago I wishing I was somebody else. Clearly for me, I have learnt that there is nothing more beautiful than being me and if people don’t like me for me, that’s fine, as long as I know I have been honest and true to myself. The moment I stopped trying to fit in, was the moment I realised I do have my own voice, my own emotions and my independence – BE YOU!!!!!!!
I’m never alone
One mistake I made was thinking that I was facing my problems alone; this is something I learnt later on in life – I used to go through situations alone, feeling lonely and sad, but through many experiences, good and bad, I have slowly realised I am never alone – there is always someone there to celebrate with, to cry with, to moan to, to ask for advice or support… everyone needs to be aware of this! I’m more open with my emotions, I’m more honest with myself and I just always remember that I’m not alone!
This was quite a deep blog post and I get that I don’t always do serious posts – but I fancied a changed today and it would be amazing to hear from you all and find out what lessons you’ve learnt throughout your life!!
Grace x
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