I believe it to be so cliche to say, "nobody understands me." Those three words roll off the tongue so easily and can be so believable at times, but more often than not, you're no mystery. Just like every other human on earth, you're completely transparent and not hard to read. I have been that girl more times than I can count.

In the past, I've lost family members, friends, and relationships because of it. When it boils down to it, I'm pretty simple. I'm a girl who loves with her whole heart, I'm a girl who isn't afraid of the future, and I'm a girl who sees the good in people. This is an open letter to my hometown, who never quite "got it," thanking you for the good, the bad, and the ugly.

To the small town who brought me up, and knew just how to bring me back down: thank you. Thank you for your lessons, thank you for your uniqueness, but most importantly, thank you for teaching me about self-worth and the importance of being a strong, independent young woman. You were not perfect by any means, but from the mistakes that I made, and the mistakes made by others while in the county lines, I'm all the better.

Thank you to the people who thought they were superior for teaching me a thing or two about humility. Thank you for inspiring me to go out into the world and do something with my life other than comparing myself to others. Thank you for teaching me about material things, for giving me the love of them, so I could understand how unimportant they really are.

Thank you to my high school. Without you guys, I would be nowhere. Thank you to the one who always got me; you know who you are. Thank you to my two best friends for being everything I needed and way more than I deserved. Thank you to this school for teaching me that it's okay to be different.

Thank you for underestimating me, so I can spend the rest of my life proving you wrong. The whole truth of the matter is, praise from your high school will not empower you, college will not empower you. You and you alone are responsible for that. Make it happen.

If you're reading this and you're struggling with your identity, then go find yourself. Allow yourself to love someone, or everyone for that matter because we need more of that in the world. Leave kindness out of your social media bio and actually go do something kind for someone.

Know that you are worthy, know that you are enough. Put your phone down and live your life because there are no second chances, and you'll be sorry. Laugh too much, say the wrong thing, learn from your mistakes, and buy your friends' dinner whenever you can.

Your friends will understand you if you let them. If they're the right people for you, they'll be there through the thick and thin and they'll make your small town feel a little more like home.