"Being tender and open is beautiful. As a woman, I feel continually shhh'ed. Too sensitive. Too mushy. Too wishy washy. Blah Blah. Don't let someone steal your tenderness. Don't allow the coldness and fear of others to tarnish your perfectly vulnerable beating heart. Nothing is more powerful than allowing yourself to truly be affected by things. Whether it's a song, a stranger, a mountain, a rain drop, a tea kettle, an article, a sentence, a footstep, feel it all-- look around you. All of this is for you. Take it and have gratitude. Give it and feel love."
- Zooey Deschanel
This last year has been full of ups and downs, new experiences and opportunities to learn, disappointments, and memories I won't forget. There have been defining moments where I've questioned my views, my confidence has wavered, and my faith has been challenged. I've always believed myself to be a strong young woman and have had pride in this; I've felt I have thrived in times of adversity even when my heart was breaking because of my certainty in what I believe in and who I am. However, I have been very humbled since, this last year, I have felt like I'm stumbling around, sometimes overwhelmed, and for the first time not being 100% sure of exactly who I am and okay with who that is. And then I read the quote above. Sometimes, I can come off as hard because each time someone has suggested I "care too much" or I feel things I "shouldn't feel" I think I've taken it to heart a little bit until it started changing the security I had in showing that softness.
However, I still know I cry when I'm really happy, I know I tear up when I'm frustrated or angry, I know I say what I feel even if I know someone won't agree with me, or get a lump in my throat when I see or hear something really beautiful. But to me, thats all part of being a woman. I don't want to apologize for any of it and I don't want being soft and passionate to be confused with being weak. Women are gentle and tenderhearted. We find beauty in every day things and moments, we feel overwhelmed at times, and we allow our hearts to get all tangled up in a hundred things and/or people at the same time. But, we handle all of the above with grace and that is what makes us beautiful. <3
Infinite X's and O's,
Dee
