Thankful for the People, the Pain, and the Person I’m Becoming

(Even If It Makes Somebody Roll Their Eyes)

You ever just sit and breathe for a minute and realize how thankful you are …not just for the good days, but for the hard ones that nearly took you out? I’m talking about the days when you didn’t think you had anything left to give, when you thought you’d hit your last limit, when you wondered why life had to be so heavy.

But somehow… here you are.

I’m thankful for family …the ones God gave me and the ones He let me choose. The people who show up whether I’m shining bright or falling apart. And I’m thankful for friends who became family, the ones who laugh with you, cry with you, pray over you, and don’t turn their back when life gets messy and complicated.

But listen… I’m even thankful for the hard seasons. Those times when I was broke, heartbroken, misunderstood, judged, talked about, betrayed, or just flat-out exhausted. Those seasons shaped me just as much …maybe more …than the good ones. They pushed me when I didn’t want to be pushed. They stretched me when I swore I was done. They made me a stronger woman, even when I didn’t feel strong.

And then there’s the other group … the naysayers, the mean ones, the ones I’ll never be good enough for, the ones who stay watching my life like a TV show but swear they don’t care. The ones who roll their eyes when they read something like this because deep down they know it’s true. They know the growth, the strength, and the honesty I’m walking in now… hurts their ego.

And excuse my French but:

Hey you… kiss my ass while you’re rolling them eyes, baby.

I said what I said.

Because the older I get?

The fewer Fs I have left to give.

And at this point, you’ve got to pay me for one.

People are going to talk whether you fail or succeed, so you might as well keep doing what God is calling you to do. Keep growing. Keep healing. Keep getting back up even when you trip over your own feet (or someone else tries to pull the rug out from under you). Keep living the life that makes YOU proud …not them.

Every season … even the painful ones, the embarrassing ones, the ones you pray nobody ever finds out about … shapes us into who God wants us to be. And yeah, it sucks sometimes. Yeah, you question everything. Yeah, you fail in marriage, in finances, in friendships, in life. But every time you fall, you rise with a little more wisdom, a little more grit, a little more grace.

Life still be lifin’.

People still be people-in’.

But I’ve learned to get up, brush myself off, and life wid it, just like I said.

So here’s what I’m thankful for:

Where I’ve been.

Where I’m going.

Who stayed.

Who left.

Who hurt me.

Who healed me.

Who loves me.

Who watches me secretly wishing they had my resilience.

And most of all, I’m thankful for the woman I’m becoming… bold, honest, grounded, and unapologetically me.

If it makes you roll your eyes?

Roll ’em.

At least I wrote something real enough to make you feel something.

And that’s on growth, baby.