Intellectualization - allows for a conciliatory analysis of an event in a way that does not provoke anxiety

You cannot run from your past. It has happened. It's a permanent stain on your life; nothing can be done to change it or take it back. All you can do is recall and build off of your experiences. No amount of regret can change the past and no amount of anxiety can change the future; reflect on your past in a way that lets yourself know it's okay that it happened, and it's okay to move on. Always forgive yourself, but never forget what you had to forgive.

Love Yourself

I want you to love yourself. I want you to look at yourself as a mosaic beautifully created and articulated; made up of every fragmented moment and memory you've experienced. I want you to see constellations in the freckles of your arms. I want you to let love seep through those gaps in your teeth that you hate so much. I want you to see the universe in your own eyes. I want your own voice to be your favorite song. I want you to love yourself as much as the moon loves the sun; leaving himself in darkness to let her shine. I want you to sprout self love out of your scars like flowers force their way out of the cracks of city streets. I want you to wake up and be happy that you did. I want you to learn that you are capable of loving and of being loved. I want you to love yourself.

Worth

I recently had a very close friend end his own life. It shook me in a way that nothing has in a very long time. It resonated with me that people truly don't see their worth, and may never see it. The fact that someone so close to me was battling with his monsters for so long and I didn't know gives me a sick feeling in my stomach, and a will to change the way mental health is looked at. Mental issues like depression and anxiety are common, but nothing short of serious. Especially in men, having one of these issues weakens you in the eyes of society. It's very important that you tell and show your friends that you love them; telling them after they're already gone is pointless. Please Please Please Please know how much you are loved and treasured. Your life is the most incredible gift, don't give it away.

Somewhere in between creating worlds and stars and cosmos and light, the universe took its time to make you. You are astral and it is selfish to call yourself any less. Try to understand the way the elements had to balance to create your skin, your body, your mind. Don't you dare ever tell me you are unimportant; every breath you take is profound. You're a collage of every sunset, ocean wave, and flower that has come before you. You're a constellation of stars and light. Don't you ever let that light die out.

                                                     

It's very important to always remember what you are a part of. "The Law of Conservation of Energy states that energy can neither by created nor destroyed; it can only be transferred or changed from one form to another". That being said, you are a complication of little parts of all the things that have come before you. You have every incredible sunset, river, waterfall, forest, star, inside you. You are one with the universe; a key component to something so perplexing and terrifyingly beautiful. Treat your mind and your body well and trust in the fact that everything will unfold the way the stars designed for you.

I want to find my happiness... or a content mind.

Permanent happiness is unattainable; as humans we have way too much going on to try to always be happy. I'm not going to ask to be happy, because that's a lot to ask. Instead, I'm asking to be content. I don't want to live my life in the typical cycle; with school, college, and a job being the most important parts. I want to travel, I want to live and feel everything to the greatest extent that I can. In hundreds of years, I, and you, will be obsolete. With no legacy left behind, we may as well live for ourselves and do what makes us happy. I want to travel and never stop learning, while giving others the freedom to do the same. I want to reach a level of complete understanding; I want to be able to forgive and love people who need to be forgiven and loved. I want to expel negative images and thoughts out of my mind. If someone is trying to find their happiness and I am not a part of it, I want to be able to accept that. I know that people need space; sometimes our lives may run together and sometimes they may run apart. I want to come to peace with loss.

20 Steps to Inner Peace

1. Tell your mom that she's beautiful and smart.
2. Tell your friends that you love them and that you're there for them.
3. Follow through; be there.
4. Smile at strangers. It may sound cliche, but that may be the only ounce of kindness they come in contact with all day.
5. Live with love running through your veins; love yourself, your friends, your family, strangers. Love despite the flaws.
6. Let yourself understand coldness; try to find out what may have made someone cruel. People are good at heart, always look for the best.
7. Do not let the world turn you hard.
8. Give chances, but not too many. It's a wonderful thing to be there for others but you need to know when to be there for yourself first.
9. Let yourself feel completely. If you feel sad, let yourself be sad. If you feel angry, let yourself be angry. Don't harbor your emotions and don't be ashamed of them.
10. Don't speak poorly of people. Everyone has a hard time sometimes, don't add to their troubles.
11. Learn yourself. Take some tome on your own to find out who you are. Fall in love with every inch of yourself, there's truly so much to love. Give yourself room to just 'be'.
12. Walk shining the light inside you to everyone you pass, plant flowers with every step and spread love with every word.
13. Give random compliments, on things other than physical features. Telling someone they're beautiful is a lovely thing to do, but sometimes they need to hear that they are kind and special, too.
14. Never ever fucking give up. Ever, You will be happy and your life will be incredible. You need to live to see it.
15. Take time to appreciate the beauty of the world. There are so many amazing things happening, let yourself be amazed. Its easy to forget how lucky we are to be alive.
16. Listen to the music you like. Listen to it loud and let yourself be enveloped in it.
17. If you need help, ask for it. Everyone needs a little help sometimes; it does not make you weaker as a person to admit that you're having a hard time and that you need someone.
18. Be kind to and listen to your body. It carries you and allows you to be the beautiful being that you are. Eat and drink enough, take your medicine, exercise, sleep.
19. Don't listen to the dark parts of your mind. Talk back to them, tell them to shut the fuck up and to let you be. You are allowed to simply 'be'.
20. You are always enough. Regardless of grades, skills, talents, family, ability; you are enough.