"You have no idea what lies ahead, but you also have no idea just how strong you are."

More than you remember the times where you were not equipped, remember the times that you were. Remember the times where you surprised yourself by just how strong you could be. Yes, there have been times where you did not meet the mark, but there have also been times you did. There have also been moments of your life where you made it further than you ever thought you would. Remember those moments. Have gratitude for those moments. Make a list of them if you have to. It is far too easy to reflect on all of the times you failed when there have been so many things you have accomplished.

And when you think about what you have accomplished, this is so much more than just thinking about your accolades or list of achievements. “Accomplish” means to be complete successfully and you have been doing that your whole life.

There was a time when you thought you were never going to make it through that night. You thought you were never going to meet new friends. You thought you were never going to learn your way around this city. You thought you were never going to overcome your fear of letting someone in, but somehow, slowly, you did. All of these are accomplishments, and they may not be the kind of accomplishments that you hang on the wall or post on your social media feed, but they are woven into the tapestry of who you are. They are woven into your story and who you are becoming. And all of these accomplishments have made you stronger. You were more equipped to handle them than you ever thought you could be.

You may no idea
what lies ahead,
but you also
have no idea
just how strong you are.

I hope you never let your past failures overshadow your past successes. The failures will always scream at you the loudest, but when you actually listen to what they’re saying, they don’t tell the story. You do. You are the one who gets to choose to shine light on the lessons you learned. You are the one who has the freedom to see what turned out be a success, or even just progress, far more than you see the failures.

Yes, there are so many things that have fallen in apart, and there are people and there are disappointments they have broken your heart, but they did not tell the whole story. They simply do not have that power.

This week, I hope you can embrace the grace that says, “you are so much more than failures.” I hope in any moment you spend thinking about the past (whether it be yesterday or ten years ago), you think about the good that came out of it. And most of all, I hope you can make peace for what was, as you wait for what’s to come.

You are so much stronger and equipped for the future than you think.

More tomorrow…
Sincerely,
Morgan Harper Nichols