Liz Bertorelli Public Facebook Post.https://m.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10215015839661117&id=1583528030&set=a.1716976535923&source=48

One of the things I've talked about with my therapist is how difficult my life has been because as a child I was always told I couldn't do anything I wanted to do when I grew up. There was no encouragement; no sitting down and mapping out how I would achieve my dreams.

Though I never had the dream to be a Princess when I grew up, had I received this kind of encouragement for being a writer, maybe I would've had more success in the literary field.

I feel like people take the power of validation for granted. A certain relentless and fearless powers come from being denied, but the different kind of power, the courage, and inspirational powers come from being cheered on.

Believing in someone else's dream also takes respect. You have to respect someone else's path before you encourage it. Otherwise, it just feels like patronization.

In this world of feminism showing women that they don't need men to complete them, there are still a few of us who want the Disney Princess love stories we were raised on. For someone to show respect by advocating the empowering of the wishes of a little girl who voices this desire is extremely commendable.

I see too many dreams like this dashed in current times because one person follows a more traditional path than someone else wanted to. I think its okay to live in a society where some want to be princesses and princes and others want to be activists and social justice warriors. All these paths of life are valid and should be treated with respect from all sides.

Living in a world where everyone is exactly the same and are all working toward the same goal would be a true zombie apocalypse. I mean think about it: an entire world of women completely disregarding men so they won't be patronized and taken care of would not only stop the population from expanding, but I feel like it would drive men to behave even more violently due to frustration — which would end the human race altogether!

I also loved the post shared above because as someone who is more traditional than not, I see a lot of disrespect aimed at these kinds of dreams and desires. I see massive disrespect thrown at anyone who is Christian, anyone who is Catholic, anyone who is Muslim, anyone who wants to be married, anyone who is pro-life, anyone who is monogamous, and just anyone who wants or practices ANYTHING traditional in or from life.

Now, I don't see traditionalism with rose colored glasses. One can definitely find harmful ideologies in everything that I've listed. However, disrespecting someone's history, beliefs, culture, and/or spirituality just because it's traditional is frankly just a shitty thing to do. I feel like I have just a much right to exist as those who are nontraditional.

Can you imagine how crushed the hypothetical daughter from the original post would have been if she'd been told how unrealistic her dream was? How she should want something better for herself than just being some princess? By showing her dream respect, an entire world of possibilities has opened up for her — whether she grows up a traditionalist or nontraditional. May more people start to respect the traditional dreams and desires of the world, as well as nontraditional.