Hey Me,

I just wanted to say how proud of you I am. Life's been hard, we both know it's been, but you are one of the strongest people I know. It's easy to get down on yourself sometimes because you don't always remember where you've been.

Remember when you were little and you wanted to become a vet, or an astronaut or a professional athlete? I know those dreams didn't happen for you, but that doesn't mean that you let yourself down because you haven't gotten there. When you were younger, you saw no flaws in the world. You couldn't foresee the hardships you were going to have to overcome or fathom the level of difficulty it takes to get through life. You didn't let yourself down. As you saw the world for what it really was, dreams changed, and as of right now, you are exactly where you need to be.

Your path took different courses than you thought it would. Divorce broke up your family, drugs and alcohol become a part of your everyday life, cancer struck and continues to strike, you've been to too many funerals, but you survived through the pain and anguish. You didn't let anyone stand in the way of your dreams that developed throughout your life. You're accomplishing them all. You inspire me.

You continue to inspire and help others. You are doing something with what you thought was maybe a worthless life; you are persevering. Everything God throws at you you handle and take in stride. You know he throws these battles at you because you are one of his toughest warriors. You are great, and you handle it when you're not. You have people who look up to you, and you continue to never disappoint.

I want you to look back right now and think of everything you've ever overcome. Remember it in this moment. You got through those barriers alive and better than ever. Now think of the obstacles that you are taking on head first right now, think of ones that might be looming in your near future. You will survive what you're going through right now because you have already shown you can, and you came out even better than before.

I can't believe we've made it this far. I can't believe we are where we are. We did this in spite of everything that's been thrown our way, and we're still improving our lives and ourselves every day. This is something to be proud of. We turned those obstacles into lessons, that anguish into motivation. Most people wouldn't be where we are today with all that we've been through. Thank you for never giving up on me.

With Love,

You