she missed her childhood photos, so she asked her mother if she could find them. she wanted to look at how happy she was when she was little. look at that smile, she said, while holding a picture of when she was five. that smile; so vibrant, bright, and gleaming. would she be able to smile like that again? she saw so much color in her world, now her days are filled with hues of black and gray. she feels as though her world now has gone cold. but those memories of the past remind her that although she doesn't feel happy now, there is always hope. hope that things will get better. she just needs to find the light around her, and within herself, to keep going despite the pain.

i want to say "i love you" and "thank you" too much than too little.

perhaps in the moments of feeling lost, we find ourselves.

i open my eyes and the light hits my face
i toss and turn in my bedsheets, stretching my arms
i inhale breaths of life
and exhale
i am grateful

i am grateful for a roof over my head
a warm bed to sleep on
clean water to drink
and food i can eat

i am grateful for blue skies and sunshine
staring up into the horizons
feeling the warmth consume my body
from the inside out

i am grateful for friends who care about me
saying i was lonely, feeling hurt, and down
giving me a listening ear and a shoulder to cry on

i am grateful for tough days
for without them, how could we be grateful?
learning to appreciate what we have
despite feeling empty and broken

i am grateful for silent moments and days where i sing at the top of my lungs
learning to embrace the still and quiet
taking the time to reflect
that even silent moments have something to teach us
and expressing my joy
dancing like nobody is watching

but most of all, i am grateful for my Savior, Jesus
who bore everything for me on that cross
pursuing me despite my messiness, failures, and sins
fully knowing me and loving me
i am eternally grateful
forever grateful
of each breath He gives me
teaching me to live this life for Him
and not myself
to give glory, honor, and praise to the One who paid my debt

she hasn't spoken to anyone in weeks.
she sits as the world passes by,
unaware of how much heaviness she carries inside her.
her world feels as though it is caving in deeper and deeper,
and she cannot cry out for help,
so she stays silent,
feeling the weight of it all.