My story

Have you 'met' Ashlee Birk?  If you don't know who I'm talking about, you are missing out!  Ashlee has an amazing and inspiring story of how she overcame tragedy and chose to stand.  From the moment I read her story, I've been inspired.  She has started a campaign to empower others to stand.  Others who have fallen or who have been broken into pieces by their circumstances...or sometimes their own choices.

I feel so honored that she featured a post I wrote on for her blog.

Those who have been following me know how passionate I am about empowering others to get back up after falling down.  And we all fall down!  It's always about standing up one more time than we fall.  That's the recipe for success in any aspect of life.

Life is hard.  Really hard.  Unfairly hard sometimes.  But life is also worth living.  Life is worth standing up and dusting ourselves off.  That is the reason I started this blog so long ago.  Because I knew that I would always be in progress for good.  I always tell my husband that if sharing my story helps even just one person to have the strength to continue their difficult journey, then it was worth sharing.

Has it been easy to open up and share sometimes (especially with peers and neighbors and friends)?  No.  It's easy to hide behind a screen sometimes and type what's in my heart.  But knowing the people I love and respect might read this...yikes.  :)

No one's story is the same.  No two people have to trudge through the same merky waters.  But together we can strengthen each other.  Together we can stand and maybe, just maybe, lift someone else up when they don't feel strong enough to stand on their own.

Isn't that what life is about?

No matter where you are, no matter your story, no matter the hard you might be facing right in this moment...know that you are not alone.  Ever.  Keep fighting.  Keep swimming.  I won't promise things will get easier.  Instead, I think we get stronger and that is what helps make the heavy loads lighter.