We are deserving

How many of us go through life thinking that we aren't deserving? I grew up in a large city. Many of my friends families lived from paycheck to paycheck. We aspired to go to college, but we didn't know how we were going to be able to afford it. We were the kids that were made to feel that we would never break out of the neighborhood that we grew up in. We were the kids that thought that we had to follow in our parents footsteps because thinking bigger didn't always feel like an option.

I went through most of my life believing what we were told. I didn't think that I was deserving of a college education, a high paying job or even someone that gave a damn about me or my future in my life. I told my mom that I was going to work in a bar, and take some time to figure out if I was college material. She told me that college wasn't an option....it was a necessity. She wanted me to be independent because she was financially dependent on a man. She worked at a job that paid her minimum wage to see me succeed. She reminded me every day that I was deserving of more.

So many people didn't have a mom like mine. So many people listen to what they are told, and don't try to rise up. I am here to tell you that there is nothing that can hold you back from your dreams if you are willing to do the work. We are all deserving of everything that we dream of. We are deserving of happiness, love, respect, an education, a job, feeling safe and secure and anything that we aspire to. Nothing should hold us back. No one's words should get in our head so deep that we feel less then.

Believing that you deserve more is half the battle.  We don’t have to be in abusive relationships, at jobs that are toxic, financially dependent or feeling like we are not able to break out of the cycle that we grew up in.  We are deserving.  We can do or be anything that we want.  

I am your proof.  I’ve been told no all my life from universities, employers, boyfriends and doctors.  I’ve been told that my life could be short.  I’ve been told that I wasn’t smart enough to accomplish my dreams.  I’ve been told that I wasn’t pretty enough to be with.  I’ve been told that I didn’t have the grit to succeed in a job like what I am currently working in.  And, here I am still living with chronic conditions, working at my dream job and having people fall in love with my confidence more than just what’s on the outside.  

When you believe that you are deserving everything falls into place.  Persistence and resilience become your middle name.  You become the person to remind others that they are, too.  Hello, my friend, here is your reminder.