"Happiness can be found in the darkes of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light."
-Albus Dumbledore

I never thought in my life that I would one day be the girl who wished the world joy. I know that sounds like such a silly thing to say, but honestly: joy? I thought happiness was only for the pretty girls. That those who have experienced the hells of the world could never know a life other than pain and suffering.

But I was wrong. Very, very wrong.

Terrible things happen to everyone. At some point in our lives, we will all experience heartbreak, death, loss, failure and an insurmountable grief that will threaten to swallow us whole.

I can personally attest to this. I was the kid who grew up in hospitals. The kid who watched her stepbrother suffer from kidney failure. The child who had to leave her mom in Arizona after an emergency surgery because she had to return to school. The girl who sat with her stepmom in the dark for 7 hours watching her father begin to die.

I was the girl who chose the funeral of a loved one over an Organic Chemistry exam and willingly took a zero. The girl who survived a tornado with her family crammed in the bathroom.

But I am NOT the girl who will allow her tragedy to define her. To break her down into dust, without a chance of recovery.

And neither are you.

Whatever mountain stands in front or behind you, whatever tragedy threatens to strike you down with words sharper than any blade, I hope you never forget to find joy.

To feel the air that expands and contracts your lungs. The heart that continues to beat despite your fears that it may stop. To feel the sun on your back and the rain in your hair.

You are a survivor.

And there is a reason that this tragedy could not end you. Never lose sight of that. Your purpose on this earth is far from over, my friend. And you will move MOUNTAINS!

Choosing to find joy will never diminish the heartache that clutches your soul. Nor will it ever allow you to forget all that you have suffered and overcome, but to be quite honest with you? Something tells me that one day you will be glad you never forgot.

The battle scars that adorn your body will, unfortunately, multiply in numbers throughout your life, but your perspective of them never has to change.

Choose Joy.

Choose to live a life full of purpose and meaning. Full of understanding and appreciation for the hells that you and your loved ones have lived. Because while they molded you, they could never define you.

Choose to be thankful that you woke up this morning. That you were given the opportunity to love and miss someone so incredibly important to you. That you could grow. That you could learn.

And that you are still here to spread joy and love to all of those around you.

Because while we may not be able to cure the world of despair and sorrows, we can choose to change our perspective.

So if you ever find yourself at a crossroad, with one path leading toward despair and the other leading toward acceptance, I hope you might think of me. That you might think of my hopes and dreams for you and choose instead live a life full of joy and never again forget how blessed we truly are.