Thank you.

Thank you for every time you made me smile. Thank you for making me laugh so hard that my stomach hurt for hours afterwards. I'll never forget the way you'd hug me tightly, making me wish the rest of the world would melt away and it would be just us. Thank you for making me feel like the entire universe was made for us.

Thank you for our first argument. I cannot remember the reason why we fought for the life of me, but I do remember crying out in frustration and wondering what I did wrong. I remember us making up, which started with me apologizing, and ended with you forgiving me. I remember thinking that no matter what happens to us, we will make it through the rough patches and that we will last forever.

Thank you for making me believe in 'happily ever after.' I had already imagined our wedding, my vows of love, and even our future house. I imagined our future together and even though we fought every other day, I could never have pictured my future without you.

Thank you for the straw that broke the camels back. Thank you for yelling at me, cursing my name, cursing my very existence, and cursing everything we had ever been through. I remember my knees hitting the floor when you broke up with me. I cried for hours and hours, and when I thought I couldn't cry anymore, I just gasped for air. Eventually I was able to stand up, but I felt so hollow.

Thank you for showing me how to be strong. If it wasn't for you, I would not have learned how to hold my head up high on days where all I would want to do is curl up in a ball and hide from the world. Thank you for making me realize that I deserve more than what I had. I deserve happiness, not misery. Thank you for being the misery that broke me. Thank you for being the misery that led me to happiness.

I don't know how you have been doing. I don't know if you have a new person in your life. I don't know if you've thought about me at all since our breakup. There is one thing I do know: I don't care. I can finally smile without forcing myself to. I can finally listen to that song that we slow danced to and not have to turn it off before the chorus starts. I'm a stronger person now for the pain you put me through and because of that, I would not trade our time together for anything.

Thank you for being one of life's many hard lessons.

Sincerely,

A Stronger Person