BRAVER HOPE

CHOOSE YOURSELF

Understand that letting go can be a form of loving

yourself. Understand it's okay to choose yourself.
Understand you are not a bad person for choosing to
heal. We are taught how to please people but rarely are
we taught how to give what's important to ourselves. So,
take the time to learn and to understand who you are.
Don't look for love in people before you look for it in
yourself. Your heart does not beat the same as the
person next to you. It does not jump for the same
reasons you would willingly risk for. Be free to decide
what love should look like for you. And feel underneath
your chest. Your love doesn't have to be for everyone.
But it does not mean your love is barren. It does not
mean your love is not enough. It is simply worth holding
and sharing with the right person. So let go of whatever
love you have had to carry that wasn't yours. Let go of
the love you needed to give without the support of
yourself. Run to who you are. Run to what your hands
want to carry. Run to what your heart wants to feel. And
don't look back. Don't look back on what could have
been love based on who people wanted you to be.

Braver Hope
 3

TO OWN YOURSELF

No matter what people or the world say, choose your

life. Choose it with every fiber of yourself. Fight against
fate if you have to. Change your destiny if that's where
your choices lead you. Life can be hard, but choosing
your own life doesn't have to be. Stop living to please
the world's demands. Stop living thinking you don't have
a choice. You make that choice every single moment.
Every second you get out of bed. Every second you're in
the shower. Every second you're on your way to work.
Every second you of every step of the way. And it's about
time you stopped giving a damn about how everyone
else is going to think. About what you want for your life
and what you know deep down it can grow to be. For
every choice you made because you thought it's what
the world told you to make, is a choice you equally gave
up to choose for yourself. We were never trained how to
choose ourselves. We were never taught how to be
selfish with our dreams. Our goals. Our aspirations. Our
beliefs. So perhaps it's time you did. Perhaps it's time
you stopped depreciating yourself and start telling the
world you're ready for yourself. You're ready to be who
you are. You're ready to live for your own choices and
take accountability for them. You're ready to breathe in
the one thing in your life that's made the most sense
ever since, and that is, what has always felt right for you.
Listen to yourself before it's too late.

Braver Hope
 4

RECKONING

Maybe this year is about losing yourself. Maybe it's

about searching rather than having an answer. Maybe
it's not as simple as saying you failed. You just needed to
see the world from a different lens. From a different
place or a humble ground. Maybe it's not as easy as
saying you've had your heart broken. You only needed to
have more time for yourself. And learn to know what it
was like again, to fall in love with your own warmth. Your
own happiness. Your own kindness. Maybe this is the
year you needed to learn more about giving back to
yourself rather than believe you're stuck. Maybe right
now, struggle isn't the enemy. It's the opportunity you
would learn to accept to redefine who you are. What
you've done. And who you are learning to become.
Maybe, as hardship stands at your door, it's not asking to
be invited into your home. It's asking you to face the
world alongside with it and grow.

Braver Hope
 5

TO REMEMBER WHY YOU CHOOSE TO LIVE

And I think, you'll easily find every reason you need to

resist moving on. To escape the pain and discomfort. But
this life will remind you that your life is anything but
inescapable. The feelings you bury deep. The words you
didn't say. The parts you held back from. Experience tells
you that life will find a way to make you remember. Not
to spite you, but to wake you up from a life you've
refused to live. From the version of you that you've
abandoned. This is all very becoming of the person you
were meant to be. And the more you delay the person
you should've grown up to be, the smaller your life feels.
Because it is not in our nature as human beings to
shrink. It is in our biology to expand. To grow. It is the
homeostasis of the life you are living through. So, look
for the signs. When we think that life has abandoned us,
it is more often than not, us that have forgotten what
living truly means.

Braver Hope
 6

TEND TO YOUR ROOTS

Don't give up your happiness for a version of yourself

that doesn't exist. You might be tempted to fit in, but
don't confuse that for what's genuine. You aren't like
everyone else. So, make sure the world knows that. Be
bold. Stand fiercely. Because if you want happiness,
you're going to have to start living your life as you've
defined it. And not how others perceive you.

You are the gardener of your happiness. Don't plant

seeds you wouldn't want to grow on your soil. Be
selective of the fruits you nurture. Happiness, as you
would define it, is a garden you tend to every day. And
every minute spent is a choice made to either let your
happiness thrive in your own soil or have it spoiled by
thorns and pests you allowed to enter.

Braver Hope
 7

PERSPECTIVE

But that's how you see life right now. And if you force
yourself to see it another way, you're asking life to give
you an answer for something you haven't lived through
yet. If you can't accept the way you see your life as it is
now, then ask for change. Ask for something different.
But don't expect it to happen right way. Answers come
from experience. What you're looking for has to come
from how you'll walk your path. And because every path
is different, every answer can be different too. Don't be
so impatient to look for an answer just so you can have
an answer. Find what works for you. Find what resonates
with you. Walk on a path you can proudly call your own.
Even if it's messy right now. Even if it hurts right now.
Because in the end, what truly belongs to you will never
leave you. Trust your path and be brave enough to fall.

Braver Hope
 8

IT'S YOUR LIFE

Give it your all. Tomorrow won't wait. And today might

be all that you have. Live your life with urgency. Live it
well. Live it to the best of your ability. Knowing that we
don't have forever is what counts. Because if not for our
finiteness, then how could we treat every moment with
meaning. Death should not frighten you. Living but
feeling like you aren't alive should. See - it's not just
about survival. It's thriving. It's giving yourself every
opportunity to build the life you're after. Something far
beyond sipping Mai Tais in the beach. And much grander
than living in mansions. This is your life. And that means
something. It means more than all the shiny objects in
the world. So don't spend your life wasting the breaths
you take. Make every inhale and exhale count. Live with
enough fear that you'd hate to get to the end and not
have done everything you said you would. Live with
enough courage to weather through storms and tectonic
shifts. Live with enough compassion to pick yourself up
when you fall down. And live with enough kindness to
encourage those around you. No matter what the world
says, your life will always matter. And it's time you
owned that.

Braver Hope
 9

MENTAL COURAGE

Don't criticize yourself for bad work. Bookmark it into

your memory. Resist the urge to toss it away. Because
who would we be without our failures. Who would we
be without the memories that remind us where our
story began. Who would we be if we never learned to
plant our feet in the mud and taste the soil before
reaching the mountaintop. Rejection will teach you that.
Failure will remind you of that. And this is all meant to
be a lesson in humility. In the grounding of your life. In
the molding of your humanity. So, keep this in mind. It is
not your fate to be flawless, to be perfect and rejection-
proof. It is your fate to accept your imperfections with
courage. To experience and learn what you can from the
world - from life and others - and above all, yourself. In a
world where we are pressured to excel and overperform,
let this be your reminder: you are accountable for the
standard of life you abide by. And it does not need to be
perfect. It is your moral obligation to purge any concept
of perfection that persuades you into thinking you must
live flawlessly.

Braver Hope
 10

LOVE X COURAGE

It's not about hurting the person who broke your heart.
It's about firmly planting yourself down to your roots. It's
about refusing to let someone's actions make you forget
who you are. It's allowing your heart to grieve, heal as it
should, and continue to walk knowing you believed in
your own strength. That no one is capable of taking your
strength and power away from you. That no one should
make you feel you're at a journey's end because they
said your feet wasn't meant to walk on the path you're
carving. So don't give up the parts that are worth
everything to someone you'll meet someday. Don't lose
sight of your reason to love because someone showed
you a corrupted version of it. Don't disconnect from
yourself because they didn't appreciate you. What they
couldn't appreciate has nothing to do with what you're
worth giving. Let this remind you that the story that
comes after a broken heart or a lost love does not have
to be a messy ending. We won't always have control of
what happens, but the way it ends is always up to you.
You chose love and took a chance on it. You chose love
from the start. Don't let people rob you of the love
you're capable of giving. Because what was yours to give
will always belong to you. So believe in what's yours, and
own the love you give with courage.

Braver Hope
 11

TO BE FOUND

Finding what works for you might take years to build. But
on the road to getting there, be open to the world. Be
open to ideas that spontaneously show up on your door.
Be open to conversations that inspire you or encourage
depth. Don't be afraid to change your path. The way you
walk through life and build your experience. Finding
what works for you is hardly about choosing the right
path every time. Finding what works for you isn't found
by walking on a straight road. Rather than chase what
works for you forever, let yourself know that sometimes,
it's okay to be found.

Braver Hope
 12

YOU ARE NOT BROKEN

You were not born broken. And even if you lived a life of
oppression, tyranny, cruelty, or abuse, you are still in no
regard - a broken human being. You are anything but
that. Say you are a survivor. Say you are a warrior. Say
you are a fighter. Live a life different from what you have
lived through. Life will try and break you, but it will also
mend you. And most of the time, you will do the
mending. There is no greater responsibility and
fulfillment than that. There is no one but the person that
you are right now that can change the course of your
life. So, tell yourself a different story. Write new pages.
Adjust the sails of your ship. Direct your life.

Braver Hope
 13

GOODNESS

Good things do happen. But it's not as obvious as life

handing it to you on a plate. You have to pay attention.
Observe. Feel. Connect. And breathe. Just because you
don't believe in the good, doesn't mean it isn't out there.
Just because a part of you believes you don't deserve it,
doesn't mean it won't find you along the way. We've all
done things we aren't proud of. And that's not to say you
are a lost cause because of what you've done. You
deserve all the good you can get.

Braver Hope
 14

FIGHT FOR YOUR BECOMING

In a world where holding on feels like it's the one thing

that could save you, learn to let go. Of all the fear
holding you back. Of all the chances you think you'll miss
if you don't hold on. It's not regret you should be afraid
of. Because we all live with it. Deep in our bones. And
what's scarier than regret is believing we aren't strong
enough to live when we let go. What's scarier is never
giving ourselves the chance to be stronger than who we
currently are. Be bold with your life. Take this risk for
yourself and no one else. Find the same spark that drives
you to fight for others. Don't let someone else be an
anchor in your life. Be your own anchor. Fight for your
becoming. Take control of your life. Because if you're
holding on and waiting for a bigger purpose to arrive,
that purpose is proving to yourself for once that you
have every bit of strength to live when you let go.

Braver Hope
 15

THE LOVE WE CRAVE

And that is the problem. We chase after love only to find

that it eludes us because we've never really taken the
time to learn from it. But if it's love you want, be ready
to bleed for it. Because loving a person isn't salt baths,
sunshine, and rainbows. It's all that and more. It's
worrying that one day you might lose them. It's feeling
jealous, anxious, and scared all at the same time
because they're talking to an attractive person. It's
sometimes losing your cool because you don't
understand how you could feel so much and not know
where those feelings are supposed to go. It's having
good times. Perfect, quiet moments. And hard moments
of silence and disappointment. It's being frustrated and
annoyed because they were rude or pulled the same
crap they promised they would change. If you want to
love, then love. Give it your all. Risk the 10 billion
heartbeats you have left in the world for someone
special. Focus on what you can give more than what you
can take back. Expand the way you show how to care.
How to feel. How to express and communicate. Don't
just settle for what you've always known about loving a
person. Learn from your partner/s. Read what helps you
evolve. And let go of feeling ashamed for being
vulnerable. We all want love but aren't willing to be
vulnerable for it. If we can't do what is human, we can't
feel what is human either. And if we can't do either, then
love becomes an empty shell.

Braver Hope
 16

YOU AREN'T YOUR BEFORE'S

I know what it feels like. To have made mistakes feeling

like moving forward becomes impossible. To have chased
plans only to find they didn't work out. To hold onto
decisions making us turn back on every corner we step.
To think there is this part of who you are that cannot be
saved. But the truth is those mistakes, those plans, those
decisions, this you - that's not you anymore. The you
that stands here today is different than who you used to
be. So, it’s time to put all those behind you. It's time to
let memories stay as memories. Because your memories
of mistakes, your memories of plans made, your
memories of regrettable decisions, your memories of
who you were, they don't have to be the pieces that
decide your fate. They don't have to be what finalizes
your life. Believe me, you can do better. So much better.
To chase higher. To step into new directions. To be more
than you were. If anything, it's a beginning. You aren't
where you were last year. You aren't who you were last
night. You aren't tied to your before's anymore.

Braver Hope
 17

PLANTING HAPPINESS

I am learning every day that happiness isn't always tied

to needing a reason. That when the world or people ask
you to give reasons for your happiness, you get to say
you're happy simply because you are and without the
need to prove why. But at the same time, let happiness
be something you teach yourself to fight for. Let it be a
life you work to believe in. Let it be the ordinary day. The
simple moment. The little part in your minutes. Let it be
as hopeful as believing you'll get back up when you fall.
Let it be the safe harbor you swim for while facing the
storm. And then never let it be something so easily
defined by what it must be and what it should be.
Because happiness undefined, is what it can be. What it
can grow to be. To you, from you, and with you.

Braver Hope
 18

GROWTH IN THE MAKING

There is a lesson for every road walked on. Every door

opened. Every relationship that has ended. And every
bridge that burned down. It doesn't always feel like
you're growing at first. But that's important. Because
growth travels with pain. It's bound to discomfort. And
it's connected to grief. Maybe you've lost a part of
yourself. Maybe you lost an opportunity. Maybe you
gave it your all and fell. But just because you're on the
ground, doesn't mean you aren't moving. You can be
learning to digest what you're going through. You can be
learning to feel what you've been keeping yourself numb
from for a long time. And those seconds you do are
valuable. Every minute of every effort spent matters.
Because all of that- that's your growth in the making. In
the happenings of your life.

Braver Hope
 19

ACCEPTANCE

I think that, for many times in this life, we're too hard on
the beautiful spaces life gives. Like how love always
seems to be out of our expectations. How happiness is
something we always chase too much for. How kindness
seems to be mistaken for weakness. How pain seems to
be the one part of ourselves we find hard to accept. And
then we run through all these meadows searching and
wondering where all the good things in life are. We put
all these efforts in what has to be and what should be.
But we don't take life for what it is, and we force our way
to it. Rarely accepting the way things are. Thinking there
should always be more and that the things that make us
feel the most happy, the most loved, and less in pain are
the feelings we say it’s better to hold back and pretend.
So maybe it’s not about the meadows and the never-
ending efforts. Maybe the most important thing to
remember is to live life for its moments. Rain or shine.
Good or bad. Win or lose. And not, try so hard chasing
after it.

Braver Hope
 20

IT ALL COMES TOGETHER

One day it's going to make sense. The crappy jobs you
took to survive. The days you doubted if you were ever
going to make it. The people who took you for granted.
The times you felt alone. The moments you cried
yourself to sleep. The mornings you struggled to get out
of bed because you felt nothing good would happen
throughout the day. The painful chases for love. For
opportunities. For a better future. One day, all of that is
going to make sense. Maybe not right now, but it will.
And it will happen when you least expect it. It will
happen not because life became easier, but because
finally, everything in your life aligns. And not because it
was fate. But because each and every moment was your
becoming. Each and every moment you fell and rose
back up is what makes you who you are today.

Braver Hope
 21

GROWTH IN THE MAKING

There is a lesson for every road walked on. Every door

opened. Every relationship that has ended. And every
bridge that burned down. It doesn't always feel like
you're growing at first. But that's important. Because
growth travels with pain. It's bound to discomfort. And
it's connected to grief. Maybe you've lost a part of
yourself. Maybe you lost an opportunity. Maybe you
gave it your all and fell. But just because you're on the
ground, doesn't mean you aren't moving. You can be
learning to digest what you're going through. You can be
learning to feel what you've been keeping yourself numb
from for a long time. And those seconds you do are
valuable. Every minute of every effort spent matters.
Because all of that- that's your growth in the making. In
the happenings of your life.

Braver Hope
 22

MAP OUT YOUR LIFE

Whatever is holding you back from the life you want,

think about it deeply. Give it space to expand. Open new
doors. Close those that no longer serve you. Explore who
you are by risking your heart. Relish in moments that
make you feel alive. Linger in places that spark electricity
in your body. Because you are here to be swallowed up.
You are here to feel the life you're living. You are here to
love the life you're building and the people you choose
to be a part of it. We all get that chance. And no one can
do that for you. No one can tell you what kind of life you
should have or what path is worth living. No one can
decide what you're willing to suffer for. No one can tell
you who to love and why. You have to figure your life the
same way flowers learn how to grow in sunlight. The
same way birds learn how to migrate when it's time to
move on from a place. The same way bumblebees learn
to tell what separates a flower with the sweetest nectar
apart from the rest. Your quirks make up your life. Your
oddities make up who you are. Your experiences make
up your life. So live a life you are choosing for yourself
every day. And don't ever feel threatened because your
life is not what others expect. You are not a clone. You
are not a shadow. You are original. You are unique. And
what births from that whatever manifests it is yours to
hold onto. It is yours to carry. It is yours to keep. Never
forget that.

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 23

STEER YOUR OWN PATH

Don't give up on yourself just because people say there

are better ways to do what you do. Don't lose yourself
for people who encourage their way instead of
supporting your way. It's true being realistic is important.
But it's how you confront your reality that truly matters
and not how people tell you how to confront it. There
are a million ways to move forward. And doing what
they do, doesn't have to be one of them.

Braver Hope
 24

REMEMBER HAPPINESS

Happiness was never this constant "thing". Sometimes, it

patiently sits in the places we're learning to accept. The
doors we're learning to close. The parts of ourselves
we're learning to understand. And overcome.
Sometimes, happiness waits while we're learning to
break out of the impatience of our dreams. Our sights of
the future. Of the life we envision. Because really, most
of the time, happiness is the part of ourselves we are
learning to build inside. Gradually and ruthlessly. Some
days, we'll lose. Some days, we'll triumph. But most
days, we fight. More often than not, we believe. That's
all happiness ever asks for. That it can grow out of the
mud and from our struggles. Happiness was never an
impulsive burst of good feelings, but also the slow dance
of joy in our bones. It's learning to appreciate the
simpler things about life. Happiness just is. It's letting it
be. And when it comes down to all of it, it's already here.
It's already arrived. Sometimes, we just need to
remember it already has.

Braver Hope
 25

YOU CHOOSE TO BE YOU

It's not that you don't understand yourself. It's that you
haven't paid as much attention. To the way you think
when your emotions run wild. To the way you act
instinctively vs making a conscious decision. To what
your emotions are signaling to you instead of simply
letting them loose. Every part of you is connected. Every
thought, emotion, decision, and choice. You aren't just
you. You choose to be you. And every day, you decide
who that person is going to be. Whether it's towards
yourself, your friends, family, or partner. You cannot run
from choosing yourself. You either decide your fate or
you tempt it with neglect. At the end of the day, no one
is capable of taking on the mantle that is you. Decide
how you live your life.

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 26

ON TAKING ADVICE

Don't be afraid to take your own advice. Find what works

for you. Test it out. Experiment. Be willing to bleed for
what you've chosen. For what you said you'd do. You
don't have to sprint your way to an answer. You just have
to make sure it's yours you're holding onto in the end.
Whatever people say, it is still and always will be your
life. No one can tell you exactly how to fix it. And nobody
can decide what your life will look like if you accept their
advice. You have your reasons. You've walked miles to
get to where you are. You know who the hero is. The
villain. The side characters. The missing blanks. The
memories that captivate you. And the ones that keep
you up at night. So, no matter what anyone says, look for
your voice. Speak up for yourself. Because you are the
only one who can. And then decide. Whether you'd
rather do what works for you or hold onto the siderails a
little longer. There's no right or wrong here. Only that
this life your life it's on you. Otherwise, it turns into
someone else's.

Braver Hope
 27

WHY FIGHT CHANGE

Change is what you've learned. Good or bad. Right or

wrong. Clean or messy. It's a piece of life you learn to
embrace slowly. So don't let 1 year rob you of your
perspective. Maybe you taught yourself how to fight
harder than you did last year. Maybe you taught yourself
how to risk more than you thought you could. Maybe
you learned how to let go with more strength. Focus on
what you've gained, not what you've lost. Change isn't
losing who you are. It's your becoming. All the days that
add up. The hours and the minutes. However, you've
chosen to spend the years before you is the change in
you right now. So don't fight against it. Embrace how
you've dealt with and managed your life. Because after
all, change is simply a manifestation of the choices
you've already made. And the choices you make from
here on out.

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 28

STRIVE TO THE END

Don't measure your life based on results alone. You

won't always be in control of the outcomes. Measure
your progress. Your ritual. The way you go at it every day.
How you walk your path is far more important. Don't
ignore your resourcefulness. Don't ignore what it took
for you to get to where you are. Results are ships at bay
that constantly come and go. Your journey stays with you
forever. Because you'll never forget the road you walked
on. You'll never forget the sandy beach you left your
footprints on. You'll never forget the place you
accidentally stumbled to and discovered new pieces.
Because you see - life isn't tied to the outcomes. Life is
tied to your experiences. Life is a collection of what you
do every second to reach your destination. So don't stop
now. Don't give up on your dreams or the place you
want to be in because one outcome turned south. Live
your life for the progress you've made and the practices
you've done up to this day. Be determined to see what
you've started. Strive to the end.

Braver Hope
 29

LIVING IN YOUR REALNESS

Don't let anyone talk you down into where you should
be in your life. Let yourself be the best that you can be
and the furthest onto where you can go. Being brave
means you're going to meet people who will try and cut
you out of your path. That's how being brave works.
You're not living for them. You're living for your own
authenticity. You're doing you and that's always going to
carry some resistance.

Braver Hope
 30

GIVE YOURSELF A CHANCE

We've all been lost. We've all been petty. We've all
wished life were easier. We've all hurt people and been
hurt. We've all secretly obsessed for a miracle to land on
our laps. And that is the person you used to be. Those
are the paths you've already taken. So be easier on
yourself. You're choosing who you are right now. You've
learned what was painful. You understand a little more
about yourself and life. So don't let your pain stop you
from moving forward. Ever.

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 31

RUN TO YOURSELF

When I tell you your dreams are important, take it from

my soul to yours, they are important. Don't be afraid to
chase after the things you want. Don't settle for less just
because people say it's too big or too out of this world.
You decide what matters to you most, not them. Don't
be afraid to fight for it. Fighting for your dreams might
cause you to lose a few people. It might be messy and
lined with adversity but, you have to be patient. You
have to believe in every step. In every minute you carve
yourself into life. You have to believe ruthlessly in your
own progress, however small. You see, being important
to yourself and owning your importance also carries
faith in it. It carries faith in the hours, the days, and the
years that come. It carries faith in who you are today and
how you grow to be a better person tomorrow. So let it
guide you and push you forward. Let it be the voice you
trust apart from all the background noise. Let it be your
own journey to own and walk and experience. Let it be
you. Let those dreams always carry you and your vision
in it. Run to who you are.

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YOU'RE GETTING THERE

Your life isn't over, so please don't tell yourself that it is.
Change can be a struggle, but don't let that change blind
you from all the progress you've made. Don't let your
efforts all these years wither. You're making progress,
and no matter how small it may look or feel, every tiny
step counts. Even an inch of progress is still progress.
Wherever you are in your life, don't just make it about
taking massive leaps. Growth is always welcome even in
the smallest of spaces, so be proud of yourself for all
you've risen out of.

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 33

TO BE HUMAN

Whatever gets you through the night, hold on to that.

Hold on to the parts that taught you how to appreciate
yourself. Hold on to the people that showed you being
yourself was all you ever needed to be. Hold on to the
lessons that gave you clarity. Remind yourself of what
was beautiful. Have conversations with yourself where
you aren't judging who you are for what you've done.
Don't settle for answers you aren't ready to accept. Feel
everything. The good. The spectacular. The bad. The
ugly. Because part to being human is to reminisce. It's to
practice seeing beyond what's in front of you. It is to
endure what has made you. And to grow from what has
hurt you. Because you are not here to suffocate for a
version of yourself you don't believe in. You are here to
align with what makes you a human being. And there is
no perfect way to go about it. Believe in what makes you
human and cherish it.

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THIS IS SELF CARE

Being true to yourself isn't the easiest thing to do. And

that's okay. Taking care of yourself also means accepting
bad days. Difficult moments. Like when getting out of
bed asks for 2x the effort. Don't knock yourself down for
feeling the way you do. Selfcare isn't always feeling
happy in your own skin. There's always room to sit with
what's ugly. There's always room to sit with what you've
lost. With what makes your stomach turn. And if that's
how you feel today, don't hate yourself for it. Don't force
yourself to feel good. Because selfcare isn't forcing
yourself to be comfortable. It's allowing discomfort
when it stands on your front porch. It's accepting your
feelings, not abandoning them. Be honest with what
hardens you instead of pretending like it doesn't.
Because you're simply human for having hardness in
you. Always remember that.

Braver Hope
 35

IF YOU FEEL LIKE GIVING UP...

Your journey is not a story of failed happenings. It is a

story about strength. About fighting against the currents
and coming out stronger. Your story is about courage. Of
all the hopes you've held onto and chased after. And for
that, you've succeeded. Far more than most. So, if it
feels like giving up is the only option from here, don't
lose sight of what you've fought for. Keep going. You've
learned what takes a lifetime to figure out. You've
learned what true commitment feels like. You've learned
that life isn't easy and yet, you took a step forward. At
the end of it all, your life is not defined by your failures.
It is measured by what you do after it all. After all the
pain and storms have departed. So do what you've
always done. Persevere.

Braver Hope
 36

NEVER FORGET THE ROAD YOU WALKED ON

Don't measure your life based on results alone. You

won't always have control of the outcomes. Measure
your progress. Your ritual. The way you go at it every day.
How you get to your destination is far more important.
Don't ignore your resourcefulness. Don't ignore what it
took for you to get to where you are. Results are ships at
the bay that constantly come and go. Your journey stays
with you forever.

You'll never forget the road you walked on. You'll never
forget the sandy beach you left your footprints on. You'll
never forget the place you accidentally stumbled to.
Because you see life isn't tied to the outcomes. Life is
tied to your experiences. Life is a collection of what you
do every second to reach your destination. So don't stop
now. Don't give up on your dreams or the place you
want to be in because one outcome turned south. Live
your life for the progress you've made and the practices
you've done up until this moment. Be determined to see
what you've started. Brave through the end.

Braver Hope
 37

KEEP YOUR HEART STEADY

Inspiration won't always be there to fall on your lap.

Some days, no matter how hard you look, inspiration will
elude you. But the thing is, you don't have to surrender
yourself to inspiration. Some days will be bright. And
some, will be dark. The work you do doesn't only need
inspiration to live. It needs heart. It needs your
willingness to keep moving. Even if that's going to look
like half of 100%. You don't always need a wiff of
inspiration to put you back on the pedestal. Some days -
like right now - you need to pedal even if it's hard. And
you're going to pedal forward proving to yourself you
can push on forward even when life seems it's going
south. Because that's who you are. A person with heart.
A person with a passion to keep going. It doesn't have to
be a job you love. But if this is the road that will lead you
to what you love, then keep going. Don't lose sight of
where you can be tomorrow. Keep your heart steady and
take the step.

Braver Hope
 38

WHEN TOMORROW FEELS UNCERTAIN

just remember you aren't supposed to always know how

your life is going to play out. All you know is right now.
This moment. The breaths you're taking. The choices
you're making this instant. The noises you hear in the
background. And there is nothing wrong with any of
that. There is nothing wrong with living in the moment.
You can plan the future, but you don't have to force
yourself to know what comes after. So, focus on what
you can build in your life right now. Focus on what you're
feeling and internalize that. Digest it. And if you still
don't know what you're supposed to do, don't take it as
a sign of failure. Take it as an opportunity. For growth.
For new doors to open. For new places in your mind to
unwrap. Remember, these things take time. You can't be
who you haven't learned who to be yet. Steady yourself.
You will get there.

Braver Hope
 39

GRAVITY

I don't want you to chase love. I want you to let it

happen. To fall on your lap like gravity. I'd rather tell you
to work on the love on your own skin. Like the soft
words you tell yourself when no one is around to hear it.
The kindness and empathy you deserve. And then I want
you to decide.
When the love they share with you makes you feel it’s
the kind of love that breathes more inside you. When it
doesn't make you doubt. When it challenges you to be
more for the good.

See - a story between two people isn't about chasing. It’s

about choices. And it’s really all much simpler that way.
When you stop looking for what you want to find and
when you let go of what you need them to give you.
When you let them be themselves in their own space.
It's not about who or what you can control. It's
complimenting one another. Fighting for a vision. And
allowing them to choose you just as you allowed yourself
to choose to love them.

Braver Hope
 40

WHAT MADE YOU

One day, you will learn how to love all the things that
made you. The ones that shaped you. The ones that hurt
you. The people you bled for. The people you gave
everything for. One day, you will learn to make sense of
the grief that fueled you to hold back on your life. You
will learn, that time is a rite of passage that helps us heal
but ultimately, we must work with it to heal and grow.
One day, all the things that made you the sadness, the
happiness, the betrayal, the hurt, the cruelty, and love
will be your very mark in the world. It will be proof that
you didn't just exist, but that you lived it.

You fought and you hoped, despaired and grieved. You

sacrificed and held on. Never forget that your existence
does not make you. It is and has always been the life
you've lived moment to moment, experience after
experience, and what you choose to make out of all of it
now.

Braver Hope
 41

MOMENTS

Even the strongest, kindest, and bravest people have

moments of weakness, doubt, and fear. We can only give
it our all-in terms of strength. In being kind and brave.
Moments do not make you. They show up and we
decide.

Braver Hope
 42

FEELINGS

You don't have to force yourself to feel life. Just let it in.
Any way you want. Any passageway you prefer. There is
no one road to life. No one door. No one mountain. No
one way to climb. There is only the climb. There is only
moving forward in the best way you can. There is only
giving it all you've got and that's all.

Braver Hope
 43

TURN THE TIDE

Let go because it's time you remembered what it's like to

choose yourself over what broke you. You no longer have
to feel like a burden to yourself. You no longer have to
feel like you are in it alone. It's time to turn what has
ravaged you and hurt you into the next version of
yourself - A stronger one. A kinder one. A hopeful one.

Braver Hope
 44

DON'T WAIT

It is not your job to think about how everyone is writing

your story. It is your job to dream. It is your job to pursue
what you love. Even if only a tiny speck of it exists in
feeling. It is your job to risk what you would for your life
and not what everyone else demands because it made
them millions. Your biggest task is living the life you
create. Take responsibility for it. Show up for it. Bleed for
it. Sacrifice for it. And enjoy it to the fullest. Don't make
what others count as a good life an excuse for what you
want. If you truly enjoy doing things that might seem
less interesting in society, embrace it. Go to the place
that demands the least work for your happiness.

Life is short, and today is all you can focus on. So, make
each moment count. And do it with pride. Be brave. Find
the courage to set sail on what matters to you and for
you. Because if you don't live your life, then maybe
someone else will. And maybe you'll see that someone
and wish you'd done it too. Don't wait. Start chasing.

Braver Hope
 45

PEOPLE WILL ALWAYS HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY...

They'll always have opinions of who you should be rather

than look at you for who you are. They'll always believe
in their own truth of what version of yourself you have
to be.
Know that it's not up to them, but it's you who decides.
You create your story. You create the meaning behind it.
And it's not up to anyone to say what journey you should
be on right now. I know it's hard to believe that you can
choose your life, but I'm here to let you know that you
get to. You so so do.

Braver Hope
 46

WHAT'S RIGHT FOR YOU

It's easier to live a life you hate than it is to live a life you
love. That is how most think: doing what you love is
hard. It's a luxury. And they're right about one thing.
Doing what you love can be hard because we live in a
world that encourages the opposite. We live in a world
where it's easier to pursue a predetermined path that's
already worked in the past for others.

But that doesn't mean it's right for you. That doesn't
mean choosing a different road will be more difficult.
Nobody knows. And no one can decide what struggle or
success is going to look like in someone else's life. You
have to decide that. You get to choose that. You create
the path that you deliberately choose to walk on.

And if you don't then society will decide for you. The
world will choose for you. So, what's it going to be? Will
you choose what and who you struggle for? Or will you
let people decide that for you?

Braver Hope
 47

IF YOU HATE YOUR LIFE...

Use that energy for something that's worth more of your

time and attention than hating on it. It sucks. It's
happening. And you have more than one option to see
yourself through it. Hating is one of them, but it's not
the only way. It's a brutal way to handle it. A destructive
habit that can easily go on for years.

You can hate your life today and learn to love it 3 months
from right now. You can hate where you are right now
and learn to create a life you enjoy starting tomorrow.

Easy doesn't cut it, and difficult is part of the journey

because your life has meaning. And anything that carries
the weight of that requires more effort than what's
average.

Braver Hope
 48

OWNING

Owning who you are teaches you that we all have to

start somewhere.
That you can't be greedy with all the places that swing
their doors open for you. You have to decide what aligns
with you most.
Stepping into your own power takes a lot of work.
But it's fulfilling work that teaches you how to navigate
through life in your own way and how to cut through all
the noise the world makes.
I believe it's the one thing you owe to yourself. That you
aren't a slave or a shadow of
somebody's life. That you have a voice and can speak up
because your opinions have value.
That you are your own person, not because gurus or the
world say it but because deep down you understand
yourself to a great extent.

Braver Hope
 49

THERE IS NO FINDING YOURSELF...

Only remembering who you are. The journey is not

necessarily about creating a new you. Oftentimes, the
journey of "finding yourself" is peeling the layers that
prevent us from being who we are.
The you right now already exists. And the best version of
yourself you're looking for also exists. I believe healing is
more about reconnection and reminding yourself of the
person you've always been. Along the way, you build
new pieces on top of that.
But ultimately, wholeness is not something you lose - it
is something you've forgotten.

Braver Hope
 50

STOP MEASURING YOUR WORTH WITH WHAT YOU

HAVE.

You are not a product of the things you own. You are not
complete because you have more stuff. You are not
whole because you can stand toe-to-toe with people
who have a bigger paycheck or seemingly great life.

You are a product of the choices you make. From this

moment till the next.

You are complete because you have stuff. Not more of it,
and not necessarily less of it. The fact that you own your
life already says you are.

Wholeness is not measured by where and how you stand

against others. Wholeness is defined by your being.

It is in the being - the existence - that you are whole.

Period. So, while it's alright to chase after external
pleasure, it is the internal qualities you already possess
that carry all the weight of your gold.

Braver Hope
 51

THIS LIFE WILL NOT BE AN EASY ONE

But it is different from saying your life will be difficult.

It is different from the weight of the burdens you carry. It
is different from the cruelty you choose to accept from
those around you. It is different from the choices you
could have made but didn't. And the weight of the
choices you regret.

It is different from the story you choose to tell yourself.

The parts you play in and accept. The roles you refuse. It
is different from the endings you hold onto and the
beginnings you let sit idle.

Braver Hope
 52

IT'S NOT ABOUT WHAT YOU GAIN FROM THOSE YOU

LOVE

To love is to discover happiness can be found in being

able to give to those you care about.

It's easier to focus on what we can take or what we can

receive in return for the love we give. But it's not about
what you gain from the ones you love, it's what you're
willing to do for them.

Braver Hope
 53

THIS IS HOW YOU LEARN TO EMBRACE WHAT'S

UNCOMFORTABLE

If you can sit with what makes you uncomfortable for 5

minutes and resist the urge to escape, you've won.

That's all it takes. 5 minutes of allowing yourself to feel

the discomfort instead of running away from it. It may
seem like a small win. But eventually, it compounds, and
you learn to sit with what's uncomfortable longer and
conquer your fears once and for all.

Braver Hope
 54

WHEN WE TRY TO MANUFACTURE HAPPY MOMENTS,

THEY TEND TO DISAPPOINT US -

ROBERT GREENE

Life is not waiting for extraordinary moments to happen.

It is basking in the ordinary and making the most out of
the extraordinary when it arrives.

This is a reminder that you do not to be happy all the

time to say your life is great. Life is plural. A bad day or a
bad week doesn't define your life. Whether life is good,
great, bad, or ugly, learn to accept them. What that
means is, don't force yourself to feel good if today didn't
turn out to be so great. And don't reject joy because you
believe a storm is right around the corner.

When we force the 'good' and 'reject' the bad, we're

manufacturing feelings that aren't there. And we ignore
the ones that we already feel. Your emotions deserve
recognition, not fabrication. Take care of yourself.

Braver Hope
 55

YOU FEAR THE UNKNOWN BECAUSE IT FEELS LIKE A

DOOR THAT SHOULDN'T BE OPENED.

But what you're actually afraid of is whether you're

capable of handling it. Living with clarity requires facing
what you don't know and what's unclear.
It's not that you aren't capable.

The truth is that none of us are always prepared to face

what we don't know. But it's by standing toe-to-toe with
what's unclear and undetermined that we learn to
become capable.

Braver Hope
 56

DON'T FEEL ASHAMED FOR FAILING

It happens for everyone. Even the most successful

people in the world have failed. More times you can
count. But this isn't about comparing your failures to
how much others have failed. What failure is, is you
pushing beyond your limits. It means you stepped out of
your comfort zone. It means you risked losing more than
you expected. It means you braved the unknown and
walked the muddy, foggy path.

It takes more character to fail, change, and get back on

your feet. If all you're doing is succeeding, then it
probably means you've never tried to live your life
without training wheels. You've strapped them on,
refusing to push beyond your current self. Failing more
does not necessarily equate to success. But failing well
will surely lead you to a better place. It builds a kind of
strength you don't achieve by sitting at the summit. So
let go of the shame. Learn from what you risked for. Fail
well.

Braver Hope
 57

LIFE IS HARD ENOUGH AS IT IS

Be kind to yourself. Remind yourself that you don't have

to drown just because the world sometimes feels that
way. Talking to yourself in a positive way can save you. It
doesn't have to become an excuse for you to not do
anything. It can be a reason for enduring. It can be your
reason to keep going. It can be the words that save you
today. Don't lose hope.

Braver Hope
 58

HARDSHIP

Realize that building any new skill or training any new

habit isn't going to be smooth sailing. You will fail. Not
because it's your fate. Or that you're "cursed."

Real growth is messy. It needs to be. You fall, then you

try again. You fall a second time and get back up. Then
just when you think you've solved what you needed to,
you fall a third time and get up for the fourth time.

This is the reality. And it's not sad or depressing. Your

growth comes from a place of hardships, difficulties, and
struggles. Because evolving yourself isn't a magic
formula or genius habit or overnight success.

It's repetition. It's 'how willing you are to fail.' It's

nurturing your brain to handle the soggy, dirty mud of
failure. It's training your internal chatter to look up, not
down. There is no growth without the climb. No reward
without sacrifice.

Braver Hope
 59

LOSING AGAIN

What it means to be whole, is to know that it’s okay to

be afraid of losing yourself again. That there might be
days when you won’t have it all together but that it’s
important to remember you can start over. You can grow
different roots. You can breathe new air. It is believing
that letting go can be as opportune to freeing yourself.

It is giving yourself freely to a change you are unaware

will cause on you. Like having faith that sunshine can
come in many different angles and still be as bright as it
ever was.

Braver Hope
 60

CHASING DREAMS

Just because your folks didn't have the courage to chase

after their dreams, doesn't mean you should ride in the
same backseat as they did. There is nothing stronger
than seeing the unlived lives of the people you love.
Learn from what they didn't have the courage to do. Live
your life hands in the steering wheel and eyes on the
road ahead - in your own driver's seat. What was unlived
is not because of circumstance, but free will. Choose
your life.

Braver Hope
 61

HEALING

Because if who you are scares you, then it's a good place
as any to start healing.

It's a good place as any to understand yourself. It's a

good place as any to see what's beautiful inside you and
what frightens you the most. It's a good place as any to
learn from your demons. Your weakness. And your past
experiences.

It's a good place as any to teach yourself self-love. How

to care for your roots. How to water the soil beneath
those roots. And it's a good place as any to build your
worth.

Braver Hope
 62

DISTRACTIONS AND ESCAPISM AREN'T YOUR ENEMIES

Your dependence on them is. Don't be afraid to take a

longer, more challenging route. It builds self-reliance.
Practice delayed gratification. You'll thank yourself (and
your wallet) for it in the future.

Excuses are cheap knockoffs you buy for less than a

penny who's comfort value diminishes faster than you
can blink. Self-responsibility requires 1000x more
pennies, but the comfort value multiplies the longer you
keep at it.

You are not a slave to your distractions and excuses. You

have complete and total autonomy to choose. Live your
life with intention.

Braver Hope
 63

TAKE CARE OF YOUR THOUGHTS

Taking care of ourselves also means we work with the

areas in our life where we could have wronged others or
ourselves instead of focusing on how others have
wronged us.

Braver Hope
 64

BOUNDARY

If you think setting boundaries might hurt the people

around you, just remember protecting your personal
space is a valid reason. And a conscious decision.

You don’t set boundaries to intentionally hurt people

you care about. You set boundaries so you can show up
as your best self in front of them and those around you.

Braver Hope
 65

AUTHENTICITY

The hardest things in life aren't finding a job, making a

stable income, or building a house but finding and
becoming who you were always meant to be.

Authenticity is a journey. Who you are is a constant work

in progress.

It's always the questions around "who are you" that

make us uncomfortable because deep down, we're
figuring it out and, on some days, don't know the
answer. There are battles to be fought in the world
around you, but don't forget that your greatest battle is
the one that lies within you.

Braver Hope
 66

WHO ARE YOU?

Who you are right now is why you have what you have. If
you want to have something different in your life, you
need to shift your identity.

How?
Ask yourself 2 questions:
1. Who is the current version of yourself?
2. Who is the new version you want to become?

Work towards that new version. Make choices based on

who you want to become. Do things that the new
version of yourself would do. Change is not just "doing
the work." It's shifting and expanding your identity. Self-
expand yourself.

Braver Hope
 67

YOU CAN TRUST THE PROCESS

You get to believe - as much as - you want in what you're

reaching for. You get to decide what works for you. And
you can use all that to take control of your life. No one in
this world can predict who you'll become. No one
decides your destiny. No one chooses your future.

That's all yours. Today. Tomorrow. Next week. Next

month. One year from now. Five years from now. It's all
yours to take responsibility for and control of. Yes, the
future is unwritten and unclear, but it can be built with
whatever certainty you have today. Let tomorrow take
care of itself. Plant your feet firmly into the present and
focus on your stars.

Braver Hope
 68

YOUR FATE

You don't have a creative block. You have a fear that

what you create won't be good enough. You worry that
people will judge you. You pressure yourself that your
first draft should be the final version. Creativity doesn't
block you. You decide your fate.

Braver Hope
 69

YOU ARE DESTINED FOR

Your life will always be drawn to what you love. Like

breadcrumbs showing you which path to take. What you
love is not simply a reflection of who you are. It is your
expression of life. It is every little task - every small bump
in the road that leads you to the right turn. Be vigilant.
Look for the signs. Find your North Star. Because there is
nothing greater in this life than what you are destined
for.

Braver Hope
 70

KNOW YOUR WORTH

Some people would rather spend eternity remembering

who you were than see you for who you've become.
Others will focus on what you never gave than what was
taken from you. You do not need to beg for appreciation
or validation from these people. You are not in control of
what they've chosen to see in you. And no one should
bear the responsibility of proving themselves to those
who've already made up their mind. Don't let their
judgment or their perception rob you of your
redemption.

Braver Hope
 71

YOU'RE READY. DON'T WAIT.

Don't waste the years you've spent building things.

Making things. Or even the years you jumped from one
hobby to another.

Build yourself along with doing the work you want to do.
It's wrong to believe you can only do the things you want
until you're complete or whole.

Please push that belief down. Please push it away.

Because being ready and being complete are two
different things. We will never fully know ourselves if we
spend our time waiting until we get there. We won't
ever fully know ourselves when there are always new
pieces to take and build. There will never be a perfect
moment when we're constantly learning new ideas. New
lessons.
So, go. Because you're ready, and the waiting is over.
You're not an impostor for starting something you're not
100% sure of. If anything, that makes you authentic and
brave.

Braver Hope
 72

TAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF

You're doing everything you can

And you don't give yourself enough credit. For all the
trials. For all the life lessons. For all the experiences
you've overcome. For all the people you've met and for
all the hurt you pulled yourself through.

I know. You don't want to admit that sometimes, it

terribly hurts. That all the effort you've made wasn't
probably as worth it. But none of it was in vain. None of
what you've done ever was.

That's just your pain talking. That's your inner critic

trying to convince you that what you did and what
you're doing isn't enough. But how could it know better
when ego and inner critics only see the harsh sides.

You, on the other hand, see and feel everything. You

experience life as a whole human being. You - the self -
that's the voice you want to find. The voice you want to
lean on. The voice that should be the loudest.

Braver Hope
 73

DON'T THINK. JUST BE.

The problem about thinking too hard is exactly what it

sounds like to your brain. That you have to push harder
to get the answer. And there lies the problem. Because
it's not about hardness. It's about depth. Thinking harder
is not the same as thinking deeply. You can pound away
at a thought for days and never get any closer to the
truth by trying too hard. But you can shed some light
into the thought if you allow yourself to dig deeper.

That means asking yourself "why." It means being

unapologetically vulnerable with yourself. Because all
thoughts - when left to wander - all breed some form of
insecurity. They all breed some form of fear, negativity,
shame, anger, or guilt. But those emotions aren't the
problem. It's that you aren't willing to dig deep into your
cone of fear or your cone of insecurity to align who you
are with what you're thinking about. So don't think. Not
yet. Just be. Let the thought come to you. Then dive.
Dive into the depth of your thoughts.

Braver Hope
 74

YOU ARE WORTHY

You'll never know what's better for you until you risk
losing what you have right now.

But don't be reckless about it. And don't just pack up

your things and leave. Map out your life. Be honest with
yourself about what you want. Then do it. Inspiration
and motivation are perishable. So rather than wait for
the next inspirational feeling, act on what makes you
excited right now. Act on what stirs passion in you right
now.

You don't need to have it all figured out. And you don't
need to plan every little detail. You just have to decide.
Whether you want to stay where you are for the rest of
your life or take a chance on yourself and do something
new. Stop settling for excuses. Carry your life because it
means something to you, not because it's a means to an
end. You are worthy.

Braver Hope
 75

BEING KIND ALSO MEANS ACCEPTING WHERE YOU ARE

NOW

Be kinder to yourself. You've done the work. You showed

up in countless ways. And you've given it your all. Don't
undersell yourself. Stop making excuses for others when
you know you deserve better. You are not an outcast for
thinking differently. You are not small for dreaming big.
And you are most definitely not a lost cause for taking a
chance on yourself or on others. You just need to learn
that not everything is meant for you, as hard as that may
be to accept. And that not everyone is going to be for
you, as painful as that may be to understand right now.
You rise over what you go through. Run to your people.
Find your tribe. And never stop chasing after what
inspires you. What is meant for you is more often than
not, just around the corner. I believe you will find it.

Braver Hope
 76

READ THIS IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH

YOUR LIFE

Don't be pressured if you don't know what to do with

your life. You are going to figure this out. You are going
to learn what speaks volumes to your soul. You are going
to realize one day, that all the shitty jobs and what you
thought were meaningless pursuits all lead you to what's
right for you. What fuels you. What inspires you. Your life
does not have to feel like a ticking time bomb. You only
get one, so treat it as kindly and as dearly as often you
can. Be ruthless and strict when needed, but don't
overwork yourself to the extent you have nothing left to
give. Right now, the journey is the way. The process is
the road taken. And it should be that way. For now.
Steady yourself. Pace your steps. Keep a clear mind and
clean breathing. You are going to figure out what to do
with your life. But until then, keep going. Move forward.
Because that is better than admitting defeat and saying
to yourself you don't deserve any better. Ask yourself,
what do you want to do with this moment today. And
then do it. Chase after it. It will lead you further in to
discovering what you're searching for.

Braver Hope
 77

THIS IS HOW YOU STOP OVERTHINKING

Perhaps you overthink because you think all your

thoughts deserve your attention. Perhaps you believe
that every thought that enters your mind deserves
pondering about. But I'm here to tell you that this is not
the case. There are essential thoughts. And there are
non-essential thoughts. Non-essential thoughts make up
the clutter in your brain. The noise that makes you
anxious. An overthinker. Scared about what may happen
next. See - you can choose which thoughts are essential
to you or not. It all starts with how essential they are to
your current situation. But it's also mostly consciously
making the effort to choose which thoughts you want to
entertain. It takes practice. It takes effort. But just as
how you need to train your body, you too need to train
your mind. Don't think for a second that every thought
that surfaces is worth diving into. You get to choose
which ones you want to dive deeper into, and which
ones are noise in the background. Let the noise pass you
by. Choose with intention. And train your mind. You are
capable. Because you are choosing to read this now, and
that is proof that you do have the willpower to do so.

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BE GENUINE

Don't be afraid to admit your heart is hurting. It means

your feelings are genuine. And when its real, believe me,
it's as real as the comfort you need for yourself. Its as
real as the kindness you deserve to take for the pieces
that feel scattered. You owe it to yourself to feel what
you need to feel. At the same time, you owe it to
yourself to let go of whatever is hurting you. Then do it
to heal. Do it because whatever hurts you should not
have to bring you down, but to rise beyond what is no
longer worth keeping buried inside you.

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 79

DON'T ABANDON YOURSELF

You don't have to be the best version of yourself for

every person that comes along. You strive to be the best
version of yourself, regardless of who shows up. You'll
fail a lot. Hit dead ends. Say the wrong things. And it's all
going to be part of the process. Don't make the mistake
of thinking who you are is entirely based on how you
lived your life. Your life isn't over. The journey hasn't
ended. And tomorrow is still unwritten. Never say what
you've done and who you were makes up 100% of who
you are. Those moments are still shaping you. You are
still learning all of this as you go. And it's okay if you're
taking a longer time to figure it all out. People might
judge you, but that doesn't mean it's the truth. You still
can and always will, have a chance to do more than the
worse parts. Never ever give up on who you can be. And
who you can grow to be. Bloom from everything
underneath you

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 80

THERE IS A LOVE OUT THERE FOR YOU

Because you are worthy of love, my sunflower. But give it

time. Be patient. There's no need to rush and keep
hurting yourself just so you can find it. Your love is
special so don't tell yourself you're unworthy when
people don't reciprocate. Don't let rejection make you
believe your heart is not worth holding onto. Because it
so so is. Sometimes, we believe the love we once had
was the love that was meant for us. But the truth is, no
one ever really knows. Not even the universe. Because
love is not just about finding the right people. Love is a
story between two people. And that story can be told in
so many ways. It can come from a strange experience,
and there are times everything totally feels in sync with
life. To be worthy of love has nothing to do with your
past experiences, and more to do with what you believe
about the love you want to give. So, love wildly. Love the
way you would and learn how to let it bloom when need
be. Let it grow instead of asking it to be perfect. Let your
heart be open to all the things you can teach it, so it
expands even brighter than it was. And most of all, listen
to it. Listen to yourself more. Don't be afraid to follow
your own path to love. Because more often than not,
that's how we build the love within ourselves. And that's
how we learn to love those around us with more grace,
more respect, more assurance, and more maturity.

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 81

EMBRACE IT

When things are good, lean into that feeling. Don't push
it away because you think it's only there for a time. You
need to learn to sit with the things you truly feel good
about. Because the problem is we spend too much time
trying to chase the good things in life. We spend so
much time running after the good things without pause.
When really, sometimes, all it takes is to sit with the
good feelings you have right now.

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 82

EVERYTHING CAN WAIT

Because even the best parts take time. Like learning to

be free of what hurts you. Finding a love that supports
you and appreciates you fully. Or realizing that
sometimes being patient is the best gift you can give to
yourself.
Journeys are beautiful that way.

They ask that you move forward. However small. They

don't tell you how and what direction you should take.
Because that's the only way you can find an answer for
yourself. It's the only way you can discover the truth
about how you feel or think or what you believe in.

Be kinder to yourself. Roads don't magically appear,

because you're building them as you go. Let that sink in.
And instead of forcing yourself to walk faster, know that
it's okay to take a short stop every now and then. Know
that you're still growing even when you're standing still.
You may not realize it now, but just know. Even the best
parts take time.

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 83

ACCEPTANCE

Lessons won't always come in whole pieces. Sometimes,

it takes reliving a similar experience. Sometimes, it's
going to take the same people over and over. So don't be
hard on yourself. What you learn comes to be in pieces
of who you learn to be for yourself. Allow forgiveness to
be a remedy. Allow the apologies. Accept the pieces you
need to accept for now. It does not always have to be
whole yet. It does not always have to be perfect. What
you learn, you learn either as if it were an old friend or
the stranger you needed.

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LEARN LOVE

Maybe they'll tell you to chase love. But don't confuse

chasing love with giving up the best pieces of you. The
pieces that genuinely make those around you happy. The
pieces you've held on to for so long that it's what made
people fall in love with you. We all get a chance to fight
for love. We all eventually meet the person who's willing
to fight for us. But don't be so blinded by the love you're
chasing that you miss out on the people who are ready
to open their home to you. Don't chase a love that
causes you to forget your home. True love is building
each other's home, not abandoning the home you've
worked so hard to build.

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WHAT TO MAKE SENSE?

Sometimes, the years don't add up. It tells a different

story of the person you thought you were. And you feel
clueless on what you should do. But it's why we have
journeys. It's why we have roads to walk on and
mountains to climb. No matter how damaged the road
may be, staying still doesn't fix the cracks. Staying still
doesn't turn curved roads into straight ones. Staying still
doesn't mean dead ends will disappear. So don’t let
what's difficult keep you from doing the things you're
meant to do. Don't just trust the road ahead. Trust
yourself too. Trust every part of you that's moving
forward.

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FIGHT IT

For every negative thought that enters your mind, turn it

upside down. Shake it. Rattle it. Or cut off its "tongue."
Your thoughts come and go as they please. They can be
migraines on a good day and sunshine in stormy
weather. But your thoughts don't speak for you. And
most of the time, they're complete nonsense. But if you
give your thoughts a voice, then you've slayed your
instincts. If you give them reason, you recognize your
intelligence. And if you can live happily even with
negative and nonsensical thoughts, you rise above the
demons inside your head.

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TRUST THE PARTS THAT DON'T MAKE SENSE

Maybe one day, it will all make sense. But don't let all
the sense in the world swallow you whole. Some things
require sense, and others aren't bound by reason.
They're bound by experiences. Experiences you have to
go out and live for. Experiences that won't have a right or
wrong answer. Experiences that will challenge your
beliefs and growth. To be human is to live on a line of
what makes sense and what doesn't. Human experience
isn't logic alone. Reasons don't always cut it. Sometimes,
you have to trust your gut feeling. Sometimes, you have
to trust the voice in your heart that tells you what you
don't always want to hear. Even with a roadmap, it is still
possible to be lost. It is possible to take a detour. So
maybe, one day it will all make sense. But even if it
doesn't, trust what lead you here. Trust what will lead
you. And if you fall or take a wrong turn, then know you
were able to make sense of the journey. Know that your
fall was able to create a new pin on life's roadmap.
Maybe whatever doesn't make sense right now is the
way it is because the journey you're on is yet to finish.
So, keep walking. Trust the answers you are currently
building out of your experiences.

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 88

PAIN IS HARD

You've forced yourself into a bubble of a safety and that

doesn't do anything for you except teach you how to run
from what's hard. Don't drown yourself in the pain
you're anticipating. Pain is hard, but that doesn't mean it
breaks you every time it knocks on your door. You can't
live your life clinging to the mountaintop and save
yourself from the mud. You have to learn to swim in the
mud. You have to learn how to walk with resistance in
your feet. Because there isn't anything more worthwhile
than what challenges you to break out of your comfort
zone. There isn't anything worth more doing than letting
go of the safety rails for a while and trusting yourself.
Everyone's life changes. So do people. And so does the
world. So don't expect to find a safehouse that will
exempt you from what's hard and difficult. Grow your
resilience. Grow your ability to fail and get back up.
Don't lose the will to live for moments other than what's
great and safe. Don't stop taking risks. Learn from your
choices. Take yourself farther than you did before. There
is no limit to how you'll grow. No limit to what you could
experience and learn from. So be brave and take a new
step. Don't lose heart in your ability to take on what's
hard.

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 89

YOUR PATH TO SELF-CARE

There's no rulebook when it comes to taking care of

yourself. Hand-me-downs only work half the time
because they were made for specific reasons and
different needs. But what worries people the most is
whether they take care of themselves in the right way.
And the truth is that, you need to stop worrying about
whether the path to self-care is right for you or not. It's
called your path for a reason. It's called your path
because there was never a need to follow. There was
never a time where you should have thought it wasn't
worth doing. It never had to be pretty. It never had to be
the right way for everyone else. Self-care has messy
definitions and broken lines in between. And taking care
of yourself isn't an answer you have just because
someone told you how it should be done. It's called self-
care because you teach yourself how to care for yourself.
And it's because you can make that choice every single
day is what makes every part of your journey to taking
care of yourself worth it. Believe me when I say, self-care
doesn't have to be beautiful if it truly gives you peace.
Because the goal was never about looking pretty. The
goal was always about giving yourself what you needed.

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LEAN FORWARD

You are not the same person as you were. You do not
carry the same pieces. The same heart. The same mind
as you once did. Experience has taught you how to grow.
Experience has unraveled you, broken you, and allowed
you to bloom. It has changed the hero of the story. Your
story. So do not be afraid to lean forward. Do not allow
whatever has lived in your past life to be the only good
piece that remains. Because it will not be the only good
piece you will ever have. Be a fighter for those pieces.
The pieces you can unwrap and untangle into even
greater pieces. Fuller pieces. Happier pieces. Choose
letting go. Of remnants. Of memories. Of a once great
chapter in your life. Let them go appreciating them for
their value but at the same time knowing that looking
back only hurts you more. That it is salt you choose to
place on a wound. And instead, choose scars. Choose
healing. Choose to bravely fight from where you stand,
not from where you once stood.

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WHAT LOVE TEACHES YOU?

I hope love teaches you to be brave. I hope it teaches

you to risk for it once again. I hope love teaches you it's
okay to let go. That it's okay if you spend more time with
yourself first before inviting anyone to your home. I hope
love teaches you that it's okay to experience a love that
was once messy and desperate. Because love doesn't
have to be perfect. It just needs to be human. And
sometimes, love will lead us to a place where we have to
learn the hard way. Sometimes, love will lead us to a
place we feel safe and appreciated. Sometimes, love will
treat us with kindness and other times, with less than
what we deserved. But love shouldn't turn us into
monsters. It shows us we're as vulnerable to all the good
and bad it brings. It shows us we're far from perfect, but
it's neve never what love needed to be whole. I hope
love teaches you to keep fighting. I hope love teaches
you to be proud of yourself for risking your heart. In the
end, it's the love we're willing to give that defines us
more than the love we expect to receive.

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HAPPINESS IS NOT THIS CONSTANT THING

Because really, most of the time, happiness is the part to

ourselves we are learning to build inside. Gradually.
Effortlessly. And some days, we will lose. Some days, we
will triumph. But most days, we are fighting. Most days,
we are believing. I think that's all happiness ever asks for.
That we do not need to believe it's constant positivity.
Just that it can grow out of the mud and out of struggle.
Because it's not always this impulsive burst of good
feelings. In the absence of joy - even for a moment -
happiness is also letting go of what we are forcing
ourselves to see or learn. It is also just letting it be. And
when it comes down to all of it, happiness finally lives in
the simpleness.

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YOU'RE ALLOWED TO GRIEVE

For as long as you need to. For as much as you want to. I
think that too often, we forget that it's never okay to
lose the people we love. Or the people that matter. And
it's okay if the process is slow. It's okay if you still don't
feel like you've grieved enough after 2, 3, or 5 years. It's
okay if you are more sensitive to the process than others
are. There is no shame in wanting to sit with what was
beautiful in our lives. There is no shame in giving
ourselves the time to accept that sometimes, beautiful
things do end. That allowing ourselves to break can be a
way to piece ourselves back together. When it comes to
freeing ourselves, it is always a self-taught lesson. A
lesson to understanding that letting go is to be able to
know what it's like to hold on first.

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HEALING IS NOT EASY

If it was easy, maybe healing would never exist. Maybe

your heart would never have to be in pain. Maybe you'd
have everything you ever wanted in the blink of an eye.
But easy didn't make you as strong as you are now. Easy
didn't teach you how to fight for yourself. Easy didn't
show you the difference between what you deserve and
what you didn't deserve. Easy is painless, but it's not the
reason for your growth. It's not the reason you found the
better place. All these hard things showed you strength
isn't found. It's built. So don't lose sight of what
hardness taught you. You've climbed mountains before.
You've sailed through storms before. And it would be
unwise to give up on all that you've lived through. It
would be unwise to think a different storm or different
mountain could make you fall or drown. Because I truly
believe there's a fighter in you that won't back down this
easy.

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YOUR HEART WILL LEARN TO LOVE AGAIN

Your heart will heal. And it will have scars. Because no

love is flawless. No love is perfect. And even if they
reject you, you're still shining. Please keep that close to
your heart. Because your love does not need to be
perfect for the right person to fall in love with you.
You're allowed your demons. Your fears. Your insecurities
and imperfections. So, believe that love is a story of two
people coming together and not buried treasure. Believe
love comes in pieces building beside one another and
not sacrificing who you are. Be patient with your healing.
Love you for you.

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NOT YOUR FAULT

Because sometimes, you won't be the right person for

where people are in their life. It's not always that people
are wrong for you. It's that you've changed. And it might
mean you'll have to let go of some people. But truly
letting go is walking away from what doesn't serve you
anymore, and not being cruel to what doesn't belong in
your life. If you're choosing to burn a bridge down, then
it means you've learned something. It means you've
taken the time to grow into a better person. And by
rudely banishing people from your life, it goes against
the better person you spent time growing to be. The
irony is you end up throwing away your own growth
along with the people you're letting go of. But that
doesn't have to be you. You can be the better person
you've become and kindly walk those people out the
door.

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LOVE AND CHOICES

You are never too young to try and understand love. You
are never too proud to believe in the love you hold
within yourself. You are never too naive to take a chance
on love. Because the truth is, we define our own love.
We choose the kind of love we want to hold onto. No
one decides for us what we're meant to hold. No one
decides what belongs to us. No one decides who we
must love, how we must love, and why we love the
people we love.

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KEEP GOING

Believe me, this is a life you're going to learn to love. This

is a life you're going to learn how to make sense of. In
your own way. In your own words. In the way that sticks
to you and makes you feel like it's just right. Enough with
the throwdowns. Enough with the critics. Enough with
all the thoughts that tell you aren’t good enough. This is
your journey. And learning to own it is part of it.
Learning to live it in the best way you can is part of it.
Learning to love yourself through the struggle is part of
it. Don't ask yourself to have a crystal-clear path from
the get go. Ask yourself what it takes to get from where
you are to where you need to be. Ask yourself why you
stopped believing in yourself. Why you stopped
reminding yourself how strong you are. Because the
truth is, living your life in the best way you can starts by
showing up in any way you can. Even if it's a fraction of
what your ideal day would look like, showing up is
showing up. And it would be wrong to say showing up
even in the littlest of ways isn't good enough. Or strong
enough. Or brave enough. Or inspiring enough. Always
remember. Every moment you show up for in your life is
an inspiration to the world that YOU KEEP GOING. Never
doubt your ability to keep moving forward. Never doubt
the courage you show to the world when you show up.

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YOUR PIECES

Sometimes, the pieces you thought were always meant

for you turn out to be the pieces you must let go of.
Because this is what life will teach you. There will always
be more than one destination in your life. And
sometimes, it will take traveling back and forth around
the world before you discover it for yourself. Sometimes,
circumnavigating the world once isn't enough to give us
an answer. Sometimes, it requires a repeat of the life you
lived to see what you didn't see before. Forget certainty
for a while and take on an adventure embracing the
possibility of landing anywhere else but the place you
always expect to land on. Forget the rules that tie you
down to a life of rigidness. Break a few and look out for
the spark that jolts you. Listen. It takes more than living
on a straight line to find your answer. Your purpose. Your
dream. Your summit. And half the time, you might be
covered in mud but just remember that's where life
becomes exciting. Because we learn nothing about
ourselves by refusing to climb down the mountain and
experience the world from a different angle. Don't get
too damn comfortable in your own world you lose sight
of everything that happens outside it. Embrace the other
side of the world. Believe it or not, sometimes it's life
that finds you first.

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YOU ARE NOT A BURDEN TO YOURSELF

We all have to make choices. We all carry regret at the

back of our shoulders. We all feel a random jolt of pain
that catches us off guard on our way to work or before
we head to bed or even during times we're having a
good time. And we're all human that way. It's not a
burden if you face disappointment. It's not a burden if
you can't change the past. Maturity is a hard lesson to
learn. And growing up doesn't mean life gets easier. It
doesn't mean you'll have more privileges and more
benefits. Growing up is being able to look back and
realize there's reason it had to be that way. There's a
reason it led you to where you are today. There's a
reason that certain things had to be learned the hard
way. Being mature is being able to live with the regret
you carry. It's not supposed to push you down into the
ground. It's meant to give you a reason to make better
choices moving forward. It's meant to remind you that
you were never supposed to know everything from the
start. That answers come from a place of wrongs. From a
place of trial and error. From a place of making bad
choices. So, no - all the disappointment you carry
doesn't mean you're a burden to yourself. It means
you're growing up. It means you're learning one step at a
time what it's like to live a few decades of your life
knowing your track record isn't perfect and it doesn't
have to be. This is your process. This is your path to
growing. Trust it, don't burn it down.

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SET FREE

Remembering the best parts of ourselves takes time.

And even if the road to getting there is long and difficult,
it's easier to remind yourself that the best parts of you
never left you to begin with. Because they've always
lived inside you. It would be wrong to think your entire
self carries only the bad. So, I hope you remember that
the best parts of yourself aren't pieces you have to
search the world for. Maybe you've forgotten what it was
like to be that person. Maybe you've forgotten that
those pieces never left you. They were just
overshadowed by pain. Maybe you convinced yourself
you aren't worthy of carrying the best pieces of yourself.
Whatever the reason may be, please know you are
worthy. Please know you deserve to hold onto those
good pieces. And please know, no one should ever have
to live and imprison those pieces because of the bad
things they did in the past. Sometimes, the reason we
don't believe we are worthy of carrying our best pieces is
because we've convinced ourselves our past makes us
who we are. It doesn't. All the bad you've done in the
past is the reason you give to shine even brighter than
you once did. So please stop hurting yourself. You didn't
go through all that pain only to welcome more pain
inside. You went through all this pain so you could learn
to understand it and set it free.

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FOCUS ON YOUR LIFE

There's a train in our lives we ride too often. A train that

takes us to a place away from ourselves and into the
world of others. A train that makes us focus on all the
things we don't have or can't do that others have and
can do. You know what that train is. You know it because
you probably did it 5 seconds ago before you opened
Instagram. And this is where I tell you that it's time you
stopped booking tickets for a self-doubt train that leaves
you feeling less than someone else. Or worse than
where someone else is. You're not the only one with
insecurities. You're not the only one who fears losing
what they have or fears taking a big jump from one cliff
edge to another. You're not the only one who wakes up
in the morning and spends hours thinking of their
regrets. You're not the only one who can't sleep because
they're worried about tomorrow. It's easier to paint a
brighter picture of someone else's life when you have
absolutely no idea what they've been through or what
they're going through. You're better than the destination
this train takes you to. You're better than assuming
you're worse off because you saw a snippet of
someone's life in Monte Carlo. It's time you focused on
yourself. It's time you got on a train that allows you to
live your own life.

Braver Hope