Your right to grow

No person is your friend who demands your silence, or denies your right to grow.
- Alice Walker

What is a friend?

A friend is like the plant that grows in the same place as where you planted the seed. And this plant provides all of your needs and tranquilizes your anxiety. They nullify your fears and follow you to find peace. So many people will plant seeds and nothing will grow and yet they will still be misguided in to believing this is the actions of a friend. Others will spend no time planting the seeds and expect that plant to grow. This is not the basis of a true friendship either.

When they speak their mind and you have no fears to disagree. When they’re silent and yet you know their thoughts. When they’re gone and you don’t miss them, because what you love about them becomes more clear in their absence, than when they’re standing by your side. A friend does not try to dry up the ocean of your happiness, nor put out the fire of your wrath. They don’t resent your fortune, nor smile at your grief. They accept you for either and love you for neither.

A friend is as loyal to you as you to them. They do not lie, because they know you can accept the truth. They do not steal because they know you can accept the truth. They do not steal because they know you would give it to them if they asked, and they would supply you the same. They recognize your dreams and do nothing to stand in the way of them, but rather guide you toward them.

They do all this, because they know you would to the same. A friend is a rare commodity that a person will only find a few times in the span of their life. During the hours of days spent freely, these hours should be spent with them. For hours are minimal and if they truly are a friend, these hours belong to them.

It is important when finding a friend that you keep them, by making absolutely sure you are one as well.

Respect yourself to walk away

Respect yourself to walk away from anything
that no longer serves you,
grows you, or makes you happy.

Stuck somewhere you don’t belong

Growth is painful. Change is painful.
But nothing is as painful as staying stuck
somewhere you don’t belong.

Let go of all the toxic people in your life

Until you let go of all the toxic people in your life,
you will never be able to grow into your fullest potential.
Let them go so you can grow.

Grow separately without growing apart

The most beautiful discovery true friends make
is that they can grow separately without growing apart.

It happens to everyone as they grow up...

It happens to everyone as they grow up. You find out who you are and what you want, and  then you realize that people you’ve known forever don’t see things the way you do. So you keep the wonderful memories, but find yourself moving on.

And once the storm is over

And once the storm is over,
you won’t remember how you made it through,
how you managed to survive.
You won’t even be sure,
whether the storm is really over.
But one thing is certain.
When you come out of the storm,
you won’t be the same person who walked in.
That’s what this storm’s all about.
- Haruki Murakami
(This TOO shall pass)

As much as I dream I can be

Only as high as I reach can I grow,
only as far as I seek I can go,
only as deep as I look I can see,
only as much as I dream I can be.

Wildflower

May your life be like a wildflower,
growing freely in the beauty and joy of each day.
- Native American proverb

I can grow wherever I want.

The steps I take

My shoes don’t define who I am; it’s the steps I take in them.

Grow

Your mind is a garden. Your thoughts are the seeds.
You can grow flowers, or you can grow weeds.

Always be yourself.

Always be yourself. 

Never try to hide who you are. 

The only shame is to have shame. 

Always stand up for what you believe in. 

Always question what other people tell you. 

Never regret the past. It’s a waste of time. 

There’s a reason for everything. 

Every mistake, every moment of weakness, 

ever terrible thing that has happened to you. Grow from it. 

The only way you can ever get the respect of others 

is when you show them that you respect yourself 

and most importantly, do your thing and never apologize for being you.