The Power of Words

This is a digression from the travel posts on to a more philosophical topic.

Dealing with deployment has been pretty hard for me. I am lonely most of the time, and I have no one here I can really talk to. I can't email my friends every day about it. There is only so much they can say. But lately I have heard a few amazingly impactful words. Never underestimate the power of words. Here is a list of some of the things I have been told lately. From the boy, the bestie, or distant friends, these have meant so much to me.

"You are my hero."
"You are my light and my way. I could never do this or anything without you in my heart."
"Of course I have a giant hug waiting for you"
"HUGS! PS Smile!"
"Just keep going and ignore those stupid thoughts that you can't or shouldn't"
"You'll have a hug waiting for you whenever we meet up for the rest of our lives"
"Few people are fortunate enough to have a friend like [you]"
"You need to remember, even through the tough times, you are amazing."
"You'll be challenged the next few weeks/months, but I know you'll make it through, and in the end your love for [the boy] will be even greater and you'll be able to overcome any obstacle life throws at you."
"Love triumphs all."
"I love you."

In high school my band director always used to say "every interaction you have with someone can change their day. What will you do with that power?" I am so lucky to have people around me who use that power for good. People who will love me, support me, and make me strong when I am not. Some of these kind words came from the boy, some came from my best friends, and some came from someone I have not spoken to in years. All were amazing, beautiful, and had a profound impact on me. These are only a few examples of the beautiful things I've been told in my life. Of course, there are people who will want to tear you down; people who will want to hurt you, who will be hurtful, and who will only want to see you weak. Ignore them. Those words mean nothing.

I had the hardest time ignoring hurtful words for a long time. I was told I was not cut out to be a military girlfriend/spouse. I was told I was not strong enough. I was told I could not do it. When the boy told me I was his hero, that one simple sentence changed everything. When he said that, I realized how much strength he sees in me. Strength sometimes I cannot always see in myself, but strength he knows is there. When my friends tell me they have hugs waiting for me, I realized how much I was loved and supported. When I was told to keep going and ignore the doubts I realized how much people believe in me. When I was told this would only make the boy and I stronger I saw that there can be good sides to every bad situation.

Never underestimate the power of words. Never let people tear you down. I see strength in you. I know you are good, and kind, and strong. You can do anything, you are amazing. I love you, because you are you.