Happy Valentine’s Day To Me!

I am spending Valentine’s Day alone, and I’m okay with that. For years, I fell prey to the hype around the holiday and made myself sick when I didn’t have that special someone at my side. But who decides what love should look like? I do! I have learned over the years that in order for me to truly appreciate the holiday, and all the trimmings, I have to first appreciate and love me. How can I embrace someone else and what they have to offer if I don’t appreciate me?

What instigated this post was a comment I read on social media where a young lady sent out an open invitation to all looking for a date on Valentine’s day. Initially, I thought how crazy! But upon closer inspection, I realized that we have all done things that could be misconstrued as crazy. But are they crazy? Or are they really our desperate attempt at masking our inability to cope with being alone, with ourselves?

Dream Deferred

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up

like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore—

And then run?

Does it stink like rotten meat?

Or crust and sugar over—

like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags

like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

-Langston Hughes

Resolutions

You have before you a blank slate, write on it what gives you life. -Junith Prosper-

At the beginning of each new year, most of us find ourselves excitedly making resolutions that we abandon shortly after February. It is not that we don’t mean well, we do. But life and responsibilities have a way of giving us a harsh dosage of reality. Unfortunately, we give in without putting up a fight.

This year, I challenge you to make the most of your moments. To push yourself to achieve the dreams that seem ridiculous, impossible, too big, too small, or they may have simply been relegated to a dark corner of a forgotten shelf.

Regardless of how you feel, push through it. Regardless of how much support you have or don’t have, push your way through it, because on the other side of this is a sense of accomplishment, of completeness that you will not feel otherwise. Dare yourself to dream again, as you did when you were a child. And when you do, you will see how possible it is to live your life unlimited again.