It's June 2020 and graduations have been at the mercy of COVID-19's wishes. As I watch so many moving, creative, alternative, virtual celebrations, I can't help but think back on Jessica's graduation in 2005. I came across this journal entry that I shared with her that month prior when we were making decisions on colleges, sending announcements, shopping for prom, celebrating at as many gatherings her family and friends could coordinate in a month's time... and grieving the absence of Nana, together, on such a profound level.
My love for this girl knows no bounds. As I peruse my journals and recipes for keepsakes to collect on this site, I am also revisiting beautiful memories and their accompanying ghosts. Not sure where this journey will take me, but for now... I am content to sit with this memory tonight, believing every word of the encouragement I sent to my 18 year old daughter, 5 years ago.
6/14/2015
3 things you should know about yourself today… right now.
1.
Right now, you are beautifully, marvelously, imperfectly, and miraculously You.
No one else can be or ever will be able to be you.
Your dreams, talents, heart, and shortcomings are completely and infinitely your own.
No other is capable of accomplishing what you are destined to accomplish.
To love as you are meant to love.
No one will light the world around you with quite the same hue
You are the only You this universe will every have the privilege of knowing.
2.
Right now, you have greatness in you that has only just begun to surface.
Your strong spirit, tender heart and creative mind are beginning to
awaken to the possibilities that lie ahead.
Your thoughtful nature and analytical eye are processing the mass of opportunity,
both to succeed and to fail, that lies in your increasingly present future.
Your soul is just learning how to fight to maintain
passion-driven enthusiasm in the midst of the chaos of the unknown.
This battle wages in all of us
and it is the field on which your You will be sharpened and strengthened.
Where your greatness will make her first stand.
3.
Right now, you are loved. Loved beyond what your mind can comprehend.
As a daughter, sister, grand-daughter, cousin.
A friend, classmate, confidant.
Future wife, aunt, mother, and leader.
Above all:
You are loved immeasurably by the One who imagined, planned, and fashioned all the characteristics, traits, and quirks that make you so uniquely You.
Even before your first human breath was drawn,
YOU were eternally loved and eagerly anticipated.
So, today…right now:
Shine.
Fight.
Love.
Show this world the You that only you can be.
This blog is a personal collection of my thoughts, wins, losses, memories, and crossroad moments. Almost all of which were hashed out around my kitchen counter and in my journals. If any of it resonates with you and you are ready to free-up the hidden badass you ARE right now, I can help. It’s time… Click the link and Let’s chat.
