my semicolon...

My friend Libby sent me a list of get to know you questions to ask any one you are dating or wanting to get to know...

The thought is that after you finish these questions, you'll either really like the person, possibly fall in love, or be totally disgusted that there will be no need to go on another date....

I thought it would be fun to ask these to my family.  So at dinner we went through each question.  Some were funny!

Some were serious!

Some made us tear up!

Some made us debate!

But one question resonated with me...

"What is your greatest accomplishment in your life?"

The first time i played this game with someone, my answer was Lani! 100% with out a doubt!  Who wouldn't be proud of that smart, sassy, hot mess, argumentative, beautiful child?

But when i really sat and thought about it,  she wasn't what i was most proud of.

I was most proud of surviving my life.

I think Ms Erykah said it best

"I was standing downtown, downtown

Staring at the pebbles on the ground

Tryin to figure out a way up out of this town

And I know yeah, I'm not the only one

So many people out there chase the sun....

My Life

Sho ain't been too easy

My life 

The life I wanna live

My life 

You're gonna go through changes

My life

No turnin back' 

My life has not been easy.... Lets not forget The Series Of Unfortunate Events ... lol

But i can look back at these things and laugh now.

Some laughter is not to cry...

Some laughter is because some of it is genuinely funny as h@!!...

Some laughter is because I've learn to find the humor in things

It's easy to say that the last few years could have been enough to make anyone want to give up, much less the last decade, but i kept remembering the quote my friend Jill sent me 

and time after time I've had to remind myself that 

then one day i stumbled across a website called The Semicolon Project

The first thing you read on their page is 

A semicolon is used when an author could’ve ended a sentence but chose not to.
You are the author and the sentence is your life. 

I thought that was the most amazing quote, and found it so empowering.

And then i realizes that the struggles I experienced in the past, weren't my story.

They were just the first part of my sentence...

and this is life after my semicolon :)

btw.... it has definitely inspired my next tattoo ; )