"Until you're broken, you don't know what you're made of. It gives youth ability to build yourself all over again, but stronger than ever."

-Anonymous

Dear "Strong Person,"

We all know, have or are that friend who is "strong." They're the ones who have the mental capacity of Einstein and the physical capacity of a bull. If anything were to happen they would likely be one of the first people you would call. Because, why not? They're "that person." The one who can handle anything, the one who somehow always has it together, the one who everyone looks to for guidance. We love, applaud, cherish and admire them for all these reasons.

Bravo. You've earned the title "strong." Your friends and family have decided for you that for now on this is your new label. And you gladly wear it like a Girl Scout badge without hesitation. For a while, it's going to feel great to know that people look at you and say you're "goals," and once again you soak it up with no hesitation. And you gladly continue on with your life.

Then one day, it happens. That fatal moment where your persona of "strong" is torn down, ripped apart and thrown in the dirt. And believe me, IT. WILL. HAPPEN. This is the moment where all YOUR problems, YOUR togetherness, YOUR bearings of everything around you, plus those who you've helped along the way hit you all at once.

I'm sorry.

But for us, the "strong" ones, it's inevitable. We were too strong for too long and thought we could do it all.

My only advice to "fix" what is happening... Let it happen. Fall apart. Reconsider.

Reconsider what it meant for you to be "strong" in everyone's eyes. What it meant to you. What it means now in this very moment of brokenness. This is where you will find what strong truly is. When you have nothing to offer, where you are completely vulnerable, where you have to let go and let others take care of you. This is STRONG.

Letting others help you is STRONG.

Loving yourself is STRONG.

Letting go is STRONG.

Taking time for yourself is STRONG.

Knowing when it's time to turn away is STRONG.

So, to those who are "strong." When YOU are ready, I invite you to fall. Let anything and everything that is killing you inside fall out. "Let it Go."

Reinvent yourself into a new type of strong. One that is healthy, yet still caring of others, but still takes your own needs into account.

I, for one, am that strong person. And I greatly appreciate those who have been with me through the demolition and reconstruction of my "strong."

It's now your turn. For the better. You owe it to yourself to be happy and content with who you've become.

Sincerely,

xoxoxo The Other Black Girl