To all of those skeptics out there, I used to be you. If you have ever seen "500 Days of Summer," I'd grown up to be Summer Finn. I came from a home where both parents were previously divorced and even their own marriage seemed to be plagued with fighting and issues. This situation left me questioning the picture-perfect love that the movies had painted into my mind. Where was it? It certainly wasn’t in my world, so did it even exist? I soon decided it didn’t, and being raised in a generation that refuses to let love in only enforced this belief more. Growing up in this generation has left me closed off and cold hearted. I found myself dating simply because I felt like I had won some sort of competition and so I had someone to fill the void. Soon after, I would realize I didn’t care for the person and leave them. This became a cycle for many years until, eventually, I stopped caring. Then all of a sudden, it happened. I met someone who changed it all.
It wasn’t this rush of intense emotional high. It was a slow journey that turned into the adventure of a lifetime. One day, you wake up and realize, “Wow, I think I love this person.” Trust me, saying it out loud and having that realization will warm your soul. So to all of you people questioning it at all, I am here to promise that love is alive and well. It may not be there the moment you look at someone for the first time, but it will be there in the most ordinary of moments. It’s the feeling you get when they laugh at your corny jokes, when you want the same toppings on your pizza, or when you look in their eyes and all of the sadness in your life fades away.
My challenge to all of you from broken homes, those who have been screwed over so many times that you have just given up, and to all of the Summer Finns of the world is let go. Open your heart and stop living in this world where we are so scared to feel something real that we shut everyone out. Stop looking for "happily ever after" because that is not what love is, and if that is what you look for, you will never find it. Allow yourself to feel. Emotions are the most wonderful part of being human. This person will be worth every tear shed, every negative thought, and every fight you endured that made you question love. If you take this challenge, I guarantee you will wake up one day with a garden full of flowers in your darkest places.
