With the start of the new year I feel compelled to say that 2016 wasn’t an easy year. For anyone. As I started college, it was filled with change - good and bad. It’s become obvious that college is a time of change and I think that although we’re constantly changing, it’s important not to lose ourselves. With that said, here are some quotes that constantly inspire me, despite all the changes that may happen:

1. Teddy Roosevelt’s “Man in the arena” quote - “It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles…”

2. “To me, fearless is not the absence of fear. It’s not being completely unafraid. To me, fearless is having fears. Fearless is having doubts. Lots of them. To me, fearless is living in spite of those things that scare you to death.” - Taylor Swift

3. “Stay afraid, but do it anyway. What’s important is the action. You don’t have to be confident. Just do it and eventually the confidence will follow.” - Carrie Fisher

4. “She’s gonna learn that this life will hit you, hard, in the face, wait for you to get back up so it can kick you in the stomach. But getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.” - Sarah Kay, Point B (If I Should Have A Daughter)

5. “Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.” - Maya Angelou

6. “Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen.” - Brene Brown, Daring Greatly

7. “Vulnerability is the birthplace of love, belonging, joy, courage, empathy, and creativity. It is the source of hope, empathy, accountability, and authenticity. If we want greater clarity in our purpose or deeper and more meaningful spiritual lives, vulnerability is the path.” - Brene Brown, Daring Greatly

8. “You are not supposed to be happy all the time. Life hurts and it's hard. Not because you're doing it wrong, but because it hurts for everybody. Don't avoid the pain. You need it. It's meant for you. Be still with it, let it come, let it go, let it leave you wtih the fuel you'll burn to get your work done on this earth.” - Glennon Doyle Melton, Love Warrior

9. “Be brave enough to break your own heart.” - Cheryl Strayed, Tiny Beautiful Things

10. “I'll never know, and neither will you, of the life you don't choose. We'll only know that whatever that sister life was, it was important and beautiful and not ours. It was the ghost ship that didn't carry us. There's nothing to do but salute it from the shore.” - Cheryl Strayed, Tiny Beautiful Things

11. “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it.” - Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick)

12. “New Year - a new chapter, new verse, or just the same old story ? Ultimately we write it. The choice is ours.” - Alex Morritt