To The People That Stood By Me This Decade

I am a different person from when I was 16 to now. I was a sophomore in high school with my biggest worry being would I pass Spanish class and who would I invite to my Sweet Sixteen party. A decade brought on college, finding a job, graduating with a doctorate, heartache, tough challenges, headaches, and a whole lot of self-reflection and change. I like myself a lot more than I ever did and I found a lot more satisfaction in realizing that I deserve all the good things that come my way. But as I look back on my entire year and decade, I wasn't always like this and I started to evolve depending on who was around me to influence. So this post is for all of those people that stood by me this past year, decade, and my whole life.

Thank you for standing by me through my highest highs and my lowest low. Whenever I was excited, joyous, sad, or upset, you were always the first people to be on my mind. Thank you for being patient with me as I navigated treacherous waters through hard decisions and immense confusion. Thank you for your advice whether you wanted to provide it or not, whether I wanted to hear about it or not. Thank you for never giving up on me when I thought I should give up on me.

Thank you for listening to my crazy ideas, entertaining all my dreams, and supporting me as I make those dreams a reality. Thank you for helping me discover myself so that I don't lose who I am. Thank you for teaching me the importance of hard work, diligence, and the meaning of finally accomplishing goals. Thank you for helping me be a better daughter, a better sister, a better friend, a better pharmacist, and a better person each and every day. The guidance I have received from all the people in my life is unparalleled and without the time they put into me, I would not know who I could become.

Thank you for putting the pieces back together as I did lose myself. Thank you for always telling me that I can do better and that I deserve nothing but the best. Thank you for seeing the potential in me and try to nurture it. Thank you for setting me free and not holding on when I needed to take off. Thank you for always giving your best foot forward whenever I have asked for it.

And finally, thank you for staying with me all these years unwavering, solid, and dependable. I love you all and I cannot wait to see what the next decade will bring.