Dear You,

I know times may be tough, but smile. A genuine smile. Please. Open your eyes and look around you. There’s so much more that matters than whatever it is that has you feeling down right now.

Listen to the sound of the wind and the leaves. Hear the noise of the birds flying through the air as they call out to one another and little creatures scurrying about. Watch as massive white clouds slowly make their way across the vast blue sky. Take it all in. The world is amazing. And you are amazing.

The fact that you are alive right now is beyond incredible. Your heart beats tens of times each minute. You can move, you can communicate, you can think. You have accomplished so much in your life thus far, whether you realize it or not, and you have so much more potential.

Whatever it is you’re going through right now, you can get through it. You may sometimes wish your circumstances were different. But I want you to realize something. As Ian S. Thomas has written in his “I Wrote This for You” series, “You wake up with a list of all the people you’d rather be. But you’re already on everyone else’s list.” Even in your loneliest or most depressed state, there are people who would rather have your life. There are people who admire you and love you, whether it be simply because of who you are, your values, or something you’ve done in your life, big or small. You are important. And whatever it is that’s blurring your positive view right now is just trivial. Just as storms pass, this too will pass. It is not the end of the world.

I’ll leave you with another quote from Thomas: “And though the waves might bring you down and though the currents might pull you under, the sky is always still right above you.” Always remember that.

Love,

A friend