Dream in Spite of it All: Become the Person You Were Meant to Be

Choosing to dream when life has become so demanding, and you’ve experienced more complications than triumphs, takes a lot of courage. So many of us feel like the path to our success has no destination and is just an uphill battle. That path may seem fragmented, inconsistent, and littered with tribulations we never expected. Some of us grow up in homes where love was conditional, voices were raised more than arms were opened, and dreams felt like luxuries we couldn’t afford. Others have felt the sting of betrayal, heartbreak, or cycles of emotional toxicity that left invisible bruises and a heart full of questions we’re afraid to ask because we may never get the answer. However, none of that should dictate your future endeavors and the success you aspire to obtain. You did not meet your demise because of trauma. Instead, you got a new beginning. Relish in it.

Experiencing trauma, especially within your own family, can leave you feeling like you’re permanently damaged. It can whisper lies into your mind, body and soul with discouraging thoughts that you’re not good enough, that you’ll never break the cycle, or that your dreams are too impossible to conquer.

On the contrary, trauma can become powerful because it can develop into the soil from which your strongest roots may grow. When you start healing, however that may be, you may start to realize that your story isn’t just about enduring pain. It’s also about survival and purpose. Eventually, it can become one of triumph.

Success isn’t about winning, it’s about understanding the concept of continuing to be persistent and progress consistently. Although there may be people moving faster than you, ideally unfazed by the weight you carry, the strength you exude to keep going when it seems like the walls are only caving in, is worth so much more.

You’re not late. You’re not behind. You are simply moving at the pace of your own healing, and that is still progress.

Every step you take toward your dreams is an act of rebellion against everything that tried to break you and make you believe you didn’t deserve everything your heart desires. You don’t have to come from a perfect place to build something beautiful.

Your pain should refine you, not consume you to the point you trick yourself into believing you’re not worthy or good enough to even conquer those dreams. You may still feel the anger, the sadness, the grief of what you lost, or what you never got the chance to have and that is perfectly ok. Don’t shame yourself for it. Acknowledge your emotions, allow them to flow through you and embrace them. Turn your pain into your purpose. But also let it sharpen your focus.Use your story to fuel your drive, not define your limits. Let every "no" you’ve heard make your "yes" that much louder.

You are now the person in your family who has chosen to break the cycle. Maybe no one in your family chased their dreams. Maybe they were too tired, too afraid, or too trapped in their own wounds to believe in something beyond their self-determined limits. You are now the one in your family who will shift everything. You won’t necessarily be perfect because let’s face it, no one is. It also doesn’t mean it’ll be an easy task to break that cycle. However, it does mean that you have actively chosen to be brave despite everything that made you afraid to push through. You are essentially rewriting your future and your legacy. You have now taken control of your life. You are intentionally proving that where you come from doesn’t have to dictate where you’re going.

An unfortunate fact is there will be days when you want to give up because the weight of everything feels like too much of a burden to carry and your past seems louder than your potential. When you begin to feel yourself slipping into that state of mind, remember these things:

1. You’ve already survived things others couldn’t see.

2. You’ve already climbed out of darkness most wouldn’t understand.

3. And you’re still here.

That alone is a miracle. So relax, and breathe or cry if you need to. Rest. But don’t give up. The dream you’re chasing and the life you want is not fictitious or a fantasy. It’s a promise to yourself that you are worthy of everything you aspire to have and be, no matter where or how you got started.

Let your scars either inward or outward be the tattoos on the body of your dreams, because your strength is the canvas that broke the cycle and silenced the noise.