Ever since I was a little kid, I pondered the idea of saving the world one day. I’m not really sure if it was the numerous superhero movies I watched (I grew up with brothers), or if it was the way my mother raised me to always lend a helping hand, that led me to this unfathomable goal. Some days I wish I could go back to being that 5 year old kid who was always reassured that anybody could make a difference in this world, because one thing that nobody prepared me for was how many times I was going to be told, “You are too soft, this world is going to ruin you.”

That statement stuck with me and had a way of sneaking up in some of the most important moments of my life. Whenever I openly expressed how I felt about a situation, I was suddenly “too sensitive” and “couldn’t handle the truth”. I’ve always been fascinated with human behavior, but when I stated how I was studying psychology in college, instead of getting a wish of luck I was told, “Really? A nice girl like you doesn’t belong in a field like that.” But I was never truly bothered until I was referred to as someone who was day-dreaming through their life because I was "incapable" of handling what it was like in the real world.

There have been days that I started to wonder if all of those people were right - because there comes a point in time where if enough people don’t have any faith in you, you start to not have faith in yourself. But this past year I have learned a lot about who I am and what I am capable of. And I realized that nobody should ever make you feel bad for the way that things make you feel.

So this letter goes out to anyone who’s ever felt ashamed of their softness.

This world can be cruel and cold-hearted, but it is people like you who make it better. “Too soft” means that you care, and there is a serious lack of compassion in the world today. Never feel embarrassed for being the person who cares too much, because in a world where there are new stories everyday about discrimination, racism, police brutality, terrorism - you are the one with the power and the motive to make a change. The world will not ruin you, because the world needs you.