There comes a time in everyone's life when reality sets in. You've begun to see the real world and its cruelty and hardship. You've faced a tragedy, a loss, a heartbreak. Someone, something has taken away that bright and hopeful perspective you've always had on life. Maybe it's that stupid boy who said he'd be around forever and then wasn't, or not going to the college of your dreams and having to make the best of the situation you've been thrown into. Maybe you found out who a friend really is and how you can't trust them the way you thought you could, or you lost a loved one that things just don't quite feel the same without. Maybe those heartless people don't realize the effect their words have on you, or you didn't get that job or into that internship program you've always dreamed of.

Whatever it is, it feels like the end of the world. These people, these experiences are trying to take something away from you. Everything you thought to be true about who you are and what you want from life has been shattered. It's making you question every aspect of how you see the world around you and the people you surround yourself with. You find yourself lost in the mix, not sure which way to go or who to turn to. Everywhere you look another thing seems to go wrong, anything you do doesn't seem good enough anymore. It's all of the sudden just you and all the broken pieces you've become. The disappointment, the hurt, the pain, it all sets in and it's easy to let it consume you. It's easy to let it take over your thoughts and dictate your actions.

But when the world tries to take something from you, you have to stand up and fight back. You have to figure out a new plan and move on. Instead of becoming bitter and sad, become the person you never thought you could be, the one it's trying to stop you from becoming. Don't step down because someone said you can't because something has gotten in your way. Step out of the box they're trying to put you in and live your life the way that you know you were meant to. There are always going to be people out there telling you that you aren't smart enough, that won't even take a second glance at you because you aren't pretty enough. Someone's always going to be there to tell you that you aren't good enough. People are going to try with all their might to hold you back and pin you down. They're going to try and force on you who they want you to be and who they think you are.

So be ready, be ready to prove them wrong. Be ready to bear the weight of the world on your shoulders. Be ready to let the strong, intelligent person you already know you are shine through. Their words are going to sting, but that's all you can allow them to do. Sometimes life is going to feel like it's too much for you to handle, but you must continue to keep fighting. You can't let anything stop you, not a person, not a memory, not an experience. You know better than that and you are better than that. Don't give anyone the satisfaction of knowing that they got to you, don't give into the pressures surrounding you. Their cruel, nasty words only mean something if you allow them to, they can only get to you if you actually listen to them. Once you stop believing in yourself is when your world will come crashing down.

You're always going to wonder why they feel the need to treat you so cruelly or what you ever did to make a situation go so wrong. You're going to think that something about you wasn't good enough, that there was something more you could've done. You'll look in the mirror searching for the imperfections no one else sees thinking that if maybe you lost just a few more pounds or put on just a little bit more makeup. You'll study for hours trying to improve your grades thinking that if you just did a little bit better on your next exam, that if your GPA was just a little bit higher. You'll look at every action you made leading up to the thing that fell apart thinking if maybe you had just done something a little bit differently, maybe if you had put in just a little more effort.

But don't do that, don't waste your time worrying what the rest of the world thinks of you. Don't become obsessed with that one missed opportunity. It's not worth it, it's not worth losing yourself just to impress them. It's not worth forgetting about the rest of the world just to worry about that one mistake. Stop relying on people who don't show you they're there or that they care. Stop overthinking situations that are already over and done with. You don't need their approval to live your life or to decide who you want to be. Your worth is not based off of one decision made. You are enough without their approval; you are enough just the way you are.

Other people will not always be there for you the way you need or want them to be, only you will always be there for you. It's a hard truth to accept but something to always remember. At the end of the day, when your world is falling apart, you are the only one who's going to be there to pick yourself back up. At 3 in the morning when you're crying on the bathroom floor wondering where you went wrong, why they've suddenly decided you aren't worth it, what possibly could've caused this to happen, you're the one that has to be there for you. You're the one that has to look in the mirror at your tear-stricken face and broken smile and remind yourself of who you are, how far you've come, and how much farther you are going to go.

You're the one who has to pick yourself back up when life hits you hard. You're the one who has to be ready to throw the punch back.