October is approaching which means all things "fall" are everywhere you look. Today was the first day that it actually started to "feel" like fall with the cool crisp morning and the rest of the day being breezy. I just love fall and everything that comes with it...especially the death of all mosquitos.

One other great thing about October is that it is my birthday month! October 9th to be exact. I am going to be 19 years old and as this day is fast approaching i find myself reflecting on who I am as a person and the progress that needs to be made from this point on.

There will always be things I need to improve but for once I don't want to make a list of things I need to do better or differently because I already know what all of those things are. What I do tend to forget is how far I have come and all the areas in my life in which I have done better and have succeeded or improved from before.

For the longest time I've always struggled with anxiety. Whether it be social interaction, making friends, or even ordering my food I would be awkward in how I talked and even body language. It was so bad that I tried my best to avoid putting myself out there if there was ever a chance it would fall through, because rejection scared me.

I am happy to say that through many avenues such as joining choir in high school, writing and discovering a love for photography through my high schools literary arts magazine built enough confidence in me to where I braved singing at my schools talent show. This is something I never thought in a million years I would ever even attempt to do. Through braving that, I felt like I had the ability to try out for the cheer leading team. Granted that didn't work out so good because i did end up blanking on the routine when it came down to the try-out but still, I put myself out there knowing there was a good chance I could fail which is something I NEVER did. More recently, I started working at Bilo which has made me 10 times more comfortable talking to strangers and being more open to people in general when before I was extremely guarded. I have over the span of 5 years overcome a major part of my insecurities and weakness and I am proud of myself for that.

I think back and I realize even though I still don't have all of my life together, I know I am so much closer to where I want to be than where I was 5 years ago.

We all need to appreciate ourselves for the battles we have overcome even if there as minuscule as setting up a routine to take out the trash everyday. It is not a crime to ever feel proud of yourself for the little things in life you accomplish. We all have our own battles that we face no matter how big or small they are. But we also have battles that we have won and those are always worth celebrating.

The hardships in life can bring anyone down, however, if we think on the accomplishments we have made, and the progress we have achieved then maybe the mountain of "struggle" wont be so hard to climb because you have your own encouragement lifting you up and pushing you through.

You are worth celebrating not just on your birthday but everyday that you "win".

XOXO