ho ho ho!

This is how my friends and I celebrate our excitement for the holidays.

After singing carols at the top of our lungs, asking the elf boy to sneak us more cookies, and speaking with the "one and only" Father Christmas himself, I was in a very happy mood. There's just something special about this time of year. It doesn't matter whether you celebrate Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, the 4th of July, or Decembertimes Day. At this special time of year, it's so nice to see everyone trying to be kind to one another. I see strangers go out of their way to do something nice for somebody. It's such a warm, special feeling that I wish we could feel every day.

So why not take this holiday season and remember the good feelings? Take them with you, share them with people all year long. Maybe one day we'll be saying "Happy holidays!" all year round.

Magic.

I smiled a lot today. I guess I just came to the realization of how many amazing people are in my life. I think that is something I need to realize more often. Whenever I'm feeling down, or worried, or sad about anything.. I just need to think about how many people I have by my side. It really can make all the difference in the world. I am so happy to have come across all these people, and animals (yes, my cat is one of my best friends haha). Think about your best friends. Where did you meet them? What if you hadn't been there that day, at that exact time, in that exact place? Maybe you would've never met them at all. Doesn't that just show how special a friendship is? Sometimes I struggle finding meaning in life, and purpose. But when I think about these special people.. I realize that there's some kind of magic in this world. It's beautiful.

You.

We all know how hard it is to face your fears. Something might be extremely frightening for someone, while it's not even a big deal for somebody else. I am feeling so inspired tonight after watching this for the 15th time:

Demi Lovato = hero. I've been a Demi fan since I was 16, and she's only gotten more and more amazing. Seriously, right? Such a brave girl!

The first time I heard her come out with the world about her issues, I was like "wow, it's like she's talking to me!" It really is important to talk about your issues with other people. These past two years I've dealt with terrible anxiety. A couple months ago I think I hit the darkest time in my life. A time of complete and utter lonesomeness. I was having this battle inside my own head against my own mind, and that to me is harder than any battle in the world. I felt like I was going crazy. I'm not writing this down for pity or sorrow or anything like that. I may not ever completely get rid of this anxiety, but at least I can be aware of it. I've learned that there are SO many people out there dealing with very similar things. My wish is to be able to help somebody else who may be at a low point in their life, and while doing that I can help myself.

We are all in this together, honestly. I am so touched by those who have helped me in my struggle, and I am so grateful for a life where I can learn new things everyday.

Be you. Find you. Be happy with that.