To the first guy I decided to date, thank you for cheating on me. Funny how I say thank you, isn't it? Most people would probably hate you, and at times I do, but overall there's a lot I want to thank you for. Without you doing what you did, I would have never learned or felt the things I did.

Thank you for breaking me, because by doing that, I was able to find myself gluing my pieces back together, and loving how they all fit.

Thank you for making it harder for me to trust. Had you not done this, I would still trust people I shouldn't. I would still be going through life, wondering why every time I trusted somebody, I wound up hurt. I'm careful with who I trust now, and I have you to thank for that.

Thank you for blaming me, and making myself believe I wasn't good enough. That one really hurt for a while, but over time I started doing things to help me love myself, things I should have done way before you came along.

Thank you for not seeing how much I was worth because that taught me more than anything that your worth should never be based on what others think. I define my own worth, and no one else can tell me otherwise.

Now, the next thank you is the most important one...

Thank you for making me stronger, and showing me that even in times when you want nothing more than to not exist, positive things can come from it.

I never thought I would be the girl who was broken by a guy. I'm not an emotional person. I'm not one who shares a lot of things unless it's in a place where no one knows me (aka writing for Odyssey :)). I'm not even a girl who usually cares about a lot. When I got cheated on, I felt worthless, which sounds so cliche, I know. It happens to the best of us though, and today I'm just very thankful it happened to me.