Dear sweet, beautiful, innocent, wonderful human,

Life has dealt you a terrible hand. It has given you too many sour lemons. And right now, I bet you wish life had a return policy on its cards or would offer you some sugar for your lemonade. Unfortunately, life isn't always nice. Fortunately, sometimes people are.

Fortunately, people were. You have been taken in and given things you need by people who love you.

Unfortunately, that doesn't change your situation. It doesn't make it better, or more bearable.

But, I hope you find some encouragement during this time anyway. I hope I can give you some.

We used to be good friends, in elementary school. When everything was right. Everything was perfect. Our worlds never shattered. Life was beautiful. It was sunshine, teddy bears, chocolate, and laughter. But since then, we have grown apart. We've found new best friends. But, we've still managed to remain acquaintances. However, both of our worlds have shattered since then. They have become wrong in so many ways. And life has turned a dull shade of grey. It has become rainy days, thorns, bitterness, and tears.

But, dear, sweet, beautiful friend, I hope you can still find the joy. The beauty. The sunshine. Because, I know you can survive. No, thrive. I know you can thrive.

You can come out stronger on the other side. You can prove that you are more. You can prove you're worth more. You can prove you can do more with less.

And, I don't know how much it's worth, because I'm sure so many people have told you all this before. And you've said it to yourself, too, I'm sure. But, I wanted to say it again. Hopefully, you'll believe it. Because I do.

For now, until you get your wings to soar back, we'll walk with you. We'll stand by you. We'll hold your hands until you regain your footing. Because you may feel that you've been given more than you can handle alone. But, you haven't, and you're not alone.

Until you begin to thrive, I'll pray for you. I'll pray hard. I'll pray a lot. Because, I know you have a relationship with God. Or you did. I don't know if you still do. And I wouldn't totally blame you if you don't. I wouldn't blame you if you hated Him or were mad at Him, or blamed Him. But, I don't. I still have a strong relationship with Him. And I believe He has so much planned for you and your wonderful self. So much more than this. So, I'll talk to Him. For you. And for me.

But, dear, sweet, beautiful, innocent, wonderful friend, keep your head up. Find the joy again. The laughter. The beauty. The sunshine. Be brave. Be strong. Be amazing.

But know that being strong doesn't mean you can't cry. Or get mad. Or blame someone. Or do what you need to do to get what you deserve. Because what you deserve is not this.

So, go on with your life. Go to college and face the challenges it brings with a smile and an open heart. Don't let this change you. Don't let the past 18, or however many, years bring you down. Continue to be your awesome self. Tell your hilarious puns. (Because seriously, I'll miss those in college. You better hope someone at your school has someone who loves quality puns as much as I do. And I better hope Robert has someone who tells as many quality puns as you do.) Write your beautiful stories. Quote Disney movies unapologetically. Explore your wonderful passions more. Experience the beautiful world.

And remember that this doesn't define you. Remember that you didn't deserve this. Remember that you are beautiful. And amazing. Don't let your experiences from the past haunt you. Or scare you. Or keep you from being who you want to be and doing what you want to do. Remember that not everyone will treat you the way you've been treated in the past. So, open your heart. And remember to just keep swimming. Because you are braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. Beautiful, wonderful friend, keep your head up. And soar.