Like many college girls, I have had my highs and lows with significant others throughout the years. While I have spent an unhealthy amount of time gossiping and crying and participating in the angsty behaviors of the broken-hearted, I've also spent a good amount of time contemplating the various ways in which my relationships have changed me. I've decided to make this post because, after much thinking, I've decided that. . .

My ex deserves a thank you.

This post is to thank him for all he's done. He deserves to know how much I appreciate his presence in my life.

So here's to you, ex.

Thank you for showing me what love felt like. Before I met you, I thought that just liking someone was good enough. But you taught me that there's no substitute for love.

Thank you for growing my confidence and inspiring me to put myself out there. I have never been a flirt, I have always been shy around those I'm attracted too. However, you taught me that I have nothing to worry about.

Thank you for teaching me that life is short, and that sometimes you just have to pursue what you want.

Thank you for all the times you made me smile. Whether I was just looking down at a text on my phone, or you were making me laugh until it was painful, those memories can not be replaced.

But most of all, thank you for showing me that I deserve so much better than you.

Because in the end, you weren't loyal. In the end, I got played. In the end, you left me in a fit of the most genuine sense of depression I have ever experienced.

It took a while to realize that the fact that no person deserves to feel like they aren't good enough applied to myself.

I still have to remind myself daily that I am worth more than the kind of relationship I was in.

But I still have to thank you, because now I do remind myself. Because now, not only do I know what I'm worth, I think about it every single day.

So thank you.

You have helped me to know what I need in the future, and I can't thank you enough for that.