Everyone comes from different stories, different homes, and overall everyone has different lives. Each and everyone one of us are books. We build our own character through experiences and decisions. When it comes to books we read now, they are already published, the same goes with our own stories. The past is set, and we can no longer go back and change what has happened.

Many of you may have lots of influences that say forgive the ones who have hurt you, and forget the things that are past. If it is in your own will, and you are ready, you have every right to forgive those individuals. However, you don't have to forget. The things that happen to all of us, build us. Those things either made us stronger, or opened our eyes in ways that you can not explain. Our pasts have made our characters more wise, prepared, and less vulnerable to everyday events.

My past has made me who I am today. I no longer let other people talk down on me, I have learned to say "no". I came from a broken home. I lived in a world of emotional, physical, and mental abuse. My parents were never really "parents". They treated me like an object. I bounced around from foster home, to foster home because of my living conditions. I lost my brother and sister in foster care due to how they treated us all. My mother was involved in drugs, and lots of men and only really cared about herself. Likewise, my father was selfish and could less about even having children. Those two individuals that were supposed to raise me, and help me learn to live in this life, were never there for me.

It's okay to not forget. I don't think I will ever forget the amount of trauma that is stuck within me now because of my past. I will never be cured of the constant anxiety, depression, and PTSD I have because of them. However, those events are makes me thrive the most. I am an eighteen year old first generation college student, with dreams I plan to achieve. My past has given me determination. Determination to NEVER become what my parents were and what they are now. I plan on waiting until marriage, I plan on finishing college, I plan on having a family and having discipline that doesn't result in beating and neglect.

I haven't forgotten the past, because it builds me! I am the most strongest person I know because I haven't forgotten the past. You do not have to forget. Let your past linger, because it will build you, too! All stories are different, you and I have lived very different lives. But let your past continue to make your character. After a bad breakup, it teaches us to protect our hearts better. After a hard talk with your parents, it teaches you that they are either there for you, or they are not. After losing your best friend, it teaches you that sometimes in life, there will be toxic people and it's best to let them go.

Our pasts are what make us who we are today. It teaches us things that our parents or even other people never thought about teaching us. It's okay to not forget. It's okay to hold on to those memories and hardships to help guide you through the rest of your book.