This past week taught me a lot.

It taught me the importance of family and friends. It taught me that even if you may feel sad, alone and isolated, there is a support system backing you up that you can’t even begin imagine. You’re never alone– never forgotten. It taught me to be grateful for what I do have, and stop dwelling on what I’ve lost. That it’s okay to grieve, but it’s not okay to let that grief run my life. That I have the capability to make new memories. That maybe everything really does happen for a reason, and maybe we are meant to go through these huge life changes to get to where we are supposed to be.

I may not ever be back to where I was, but where I was isn’t what I should be concerned about.

I’m thankful for all the opportunities I have in my life. I’m thankful for my health, to be privileged enough to have an education, a job, and a place to live. And I’m so far beyond thankful for the people in my life who have stood beside me through the good and bad. For the ones who never gave up on me for a second.