Everything Happens for a Reason

A long, long, time ago I was 25 years old and living a really confusing life. Without going in too much detail, I will just say that a lot of bad things happened all at once. Like...seven life altering events occurred within months of one another. It was crushing. And every time someone would say to me " Everything happens for a reason", I wanted to punch them in the face. I cannot even count the number of times I asked " WHY?!?!?" during a 24 hour period. If I was given a dollar for every time that word came out of my mouth, I would have a beautiful vacation home along the coast somewhere.

Today I sit here, two beautiful children running around my home that I share with my amazing husband and i think....wow, they were right. Everything does happen for a reason. It makes the story of your life. There's this song by Avett Brothers called "Offering" and in this song are lyrics that read " And I've known others
And I've loved others too ; But I loved them cause they were stepping stones ;On a staircase to you.
And that is how I think of how my marriage to my husband came to be. A series of stepping stones set by my mistakes and trials of life. That's how it works for all of us. That whole thing about making it through the rain so you can see the rainbow...as cheesy as it is, it's so very true. I can't hate the mistakes in my life. Because without them, I wouldn't be where I am today, nor would I be able to educate my children to not do the same. When you learn to accept what you have done, and use those choices as a tool to change for the better...you can do no wrong. However, when you choose to ignore those mistakes and place the burden of your responsibility for them...you will continue to lead a life that is laced with complications. I'm not saying that you'll never live without consequences even when you do abide by your choices. But it will make it easier to guide your way through them. This is coming from my own experience, please don't take this as preaching. I've just found that this has been the case for me. None of us lead the same lives, so everything is different for all of us.

That being said, this past weekend has been a very difficult one. Three very good friends of mine have had incredible losses. Two of them lost parents, and another one is dealing with a very tragic drunk driving accident that left her husband close to losing his leg. I find myself troubled because I'm so far away from all of them and feel like my words through social networking, are meaningless. It's such a struggle. Especially because I can identify with my friend whose husband was in the accident, I was once in her place very long ago, although not married, but with someone I very much cared about. I read her posts about being so frustrated and sad, and not knowing where to turn. She is very strong in her faith, but I also know about how angry you can become when it comes to that faith sometimes. My situation didn't have a happy ending. But that is because the person I was with at the time was struggling with many issues and just wanted to give up. I know her husband is nothing like that,so I feel like my advice wouldn't help her. So when thinking about her situation, " Everything Happens for a Reason" popped into my head, and I thought " Gosh, I hope no one says that to her...."

I think I am so....wrapped up in all of this right now because I'm listening to music and can't help but relate lyrics to some of life's situations. Then I get all emotional, but very thankful for where my life is now. There was a time where I did just want to let go of it all, if I dare be so honest. I'm glad that I didn't. Because no matter how sad, or difficult life may seem, there is always something beautiful to remember about it.

So I leave you with two things. An image and a link to an amazing song. Be sure to blast the song. It's way more special when it's loud.

Avett Brothers Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise