A Letter to Me
Don’t Let the Darkness Consume You
Dear Self,
I want to congratulate you on making it this far and realizing your worth. I am sorry you had to go through so much pain and suffering that almost destroyed you. I am sorry that your heart is good, and your kindness is seen as a weakness. I am sorry that you did not see the wolves for what they really were.
You thought you could fix what was wrong. You thought you could help him and stand by his side through it all. You allowed so much to happen because you thought it would not happen again. He said he was sorry, and you believed that. You did not realize you were worth more because you thought no one would want you because of your baggage and imperfections.
You stayed comfortable and in fear. Darkness consumed you and you lost your identity. Masquerading trying to mold into anything so the real you would not be seen. To hide it all from everyone so they did not see you as weak and stupid. When honestly, you were just human and did not realize what you know now.
You gave it your all, knocked down repeatedly but you got back up. You are a fighter and always have been. You see the good in others and believe that they cannot be ugly. That you did not find yourself facing a monster. You had an innocence about you and your perception of others.
With the rosed colored glasses removed clarity came. You feared what your gut had been telling you and honestly, you did not want to face it. You had to come to heads with it all and accept what was and had always been. Your world turned upside down with this realization. Nothing could be the same anymore.
I am sorry it took so long and so many tears for you to climb out of the vortex of ugly and disgusting behavior you thought was okay. You had to land hard on your face to realize what you know now. You picked yourself up, dusted yourself off, cleaned off the blood, patched up the wounds, and put a smile on your face because you said never again.
I am proud of you for finding who you are and knowing that none of it was okay. That you are worthy of so much. That you understand now and will cage your heart and with time heal every part of you that was tainted.
I am proud of you for cleaning out all the filth from your mind, body, and soul and begin anew. It was a difficult lesson, but you learned. Amid all the darkness, I climbed out of the mess that was destroying me and found the woman I have always wanted to meet.
Everything happens for a reason, and it is time to take your lessons and grow. It is time to be the woman you have always been capable of being. I am proud of you for never giving up, even when you wanted to the most. I am proud of you for all that you have accomplished. The road was not easy and there were many forks to choose from, but you are here, and it is the best place for you.
I am proud of who you are, for being a voice for others and accepting that you cannot fix everything and everyone. That you understand that there are some ugly hearts out there and not everyone is good. It is all about how you approach them and your response to those situations. You cannot control the actions or behaviors of others, but you can control how you respond. Thank you for being you and loving yourself.
About the Creator
Scarlett Price
I am a mom, and a domestic violence survivor. I love writing, reading, yoga, cake decorating and baking. I recently took up belly dancing. Writing is my passion and healing. Stay positive!
https://linktr.ee/mullinscasey
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Patience
Patience I haven’t wrote in a while. It’s been calm and the storm has been silent. My heart is mending. I’m taking care of my mind, body and soul. The healing process is beautiful and morbid in the sense of remembering what happened and that I’ll no longer live that nightmare.
By Scarlett Price5 years ago in Motivation
I Never Chose the Easy Path; I Always Chose Hardship
From the earliest memories I can recall, life presented me with two roads. One was smooth, inviting, and well-trodden—a path that promised comfort, approval, and ease. The other was rough, rocky, and uncertain—a path of struggle, obstacles, and lessons that demanded effort, patience, and resilience. I never chose the smooth road. I never took shortcuts. Not because I was fearless, but because something deep inside refused to let me live a life that wasn’t earned. The easy path whispered promises of fleeting satisfaction, fleeting success, and fleeting recognition. It was tempting. Many around me chose it, and I often wondered if I was foolish for ignoring it. But I learned early that true growth is rarely convenient. The easiest choice often leads to emptiness, to regret, to a quiet knowing that you could have been more than you allowed yourself to be. Hardship became my teacher long before success ever noticed me. The lessons it offered were harsh, uncompromising, and often lonely. There were days when choosing the hard path felt like choosing isolation. While others were celebrated for small accomplishments, supported by friends and family, I walked in silence, with doubt as my companion. Progress was invisible to the world. Failures were frequent and relentless. Many nights, I returned home tired, my heart heavy, my mind questioning why I even bothered. Yet even in that silence, I was being shaped. I was learning the value of persistence, of dedication, and of refusing to give up on myself. The hard path forced honesty. It refused to allow excuses. It stripped away illusions and pretenses. I was left face-to-face with my limits, my fears, and my own humanity. On this path, I discovered strengths I never knew I had: patience I had never cultivated, resilience I had doubted, and self-respect that grew every time I stood up instead of walking away. These were not lessons that could be taught in comfort. They were only learned in struggle, in challenge, and in the quiet persistence of refusing to quit when no one was watching. I remember one time vividly. I had a goal that seemed impossible—one that required me to sacrifice comfort, leisure, and social approval. The easy path was right there: a way to avoid the challenge, to be “okay,” to follow what others had done before me. Many advised me to take it. “It’s safer,” they said. “It’s simpler,” they said. But I could feel, deep inside, that taking the easy way would leave me empty. I chose the hard path. The journey was grueling. Every step felt like pushing against gravity. But with each challenge, I gained more than I ever would have on the easy road. I gained endurance, confidence, and an understanding that real achievement is never handed—it is earned. Strength, I realized, isn’t loud. It doesn’t announce itself. It grows quietly, in the moments no one sees—the early mornings, the long nights, the repeated failures, the times you push forward when giving up would be understandable. Resilience is not simply surviving; it is deliberately choosing to continue, to stand again, to pursue the path that tests you the most. It is knowing that walking away is easier but will never lead to the person you are capable of becoming. I have walked many hard roads in life. Each one was different, yet the lessons were the same: comfort cannot teach endurance, shortcuts cannot teach discipline, and fleeting success cannot teach respect. Every struggle, no matter how small, adds to your character. Every failure is a mirror that shows you who you really are. And every choice to face hardship instead of fleeing builds a foundation that lasts long after temporary victories fade. There were times when I felt truly alone. People around me often misunderstood my choices. Friends, family, colleagues—they all questioned why I refused the easy way, why I worked harder, why I pushed myself beyond what seemed necessary. They didn’t see the growth happening quietly inside me. They didn’t see the small victories, the lessons learned, the resilience being forged. But eventually, the results spoke for themselves—not in a loud announcement, but in the quiet confidence and self-respect that I had built from the inside out. Life, I have learned, rewards those who endure hardship. Not always immediately. Not always visibly. But it rewards those who persist, who face struggle head-on, and who refuse to settle for anything less than becoming their fullest selves. Success that comes without effort is temporary; strength and self-respect are eternal. Hardship tests us, but it also teaches us. It shows us the depth of our own courage, the strength of our will, and the power of refusing to surrender. The lessons of the hard path are subtle, often invisible, and always lasting. I learned that failing is not shameful; failing is a necessary step toward mastery. I learned that enduring pain, even when no one notices, builds a type of strength that comfort never can. I learned that the more difficult the path, the deeper the reward—not measured in wealth or fame, but in character, wisdom, and self-respect. Every choice to embrace struggle instead of avoiding it shaped me. Every sacrifice, every extra hour, every moment of doubt faced instead of ignored, added to the foundation of the person I am today. My life was not easy. It was messy, unpredictable, and often overwhelming. But it was authentic. It was mine. And through hardship, I became resilient. I became someone who can face challenges without fear because I have faced them before. I became someone who respects themselves because I have honored my own effort. I became someone capable of growth because I refused to choose comfort over character. I often reflect on the people around me who chose the easy path. Many of them achieved quick victories, immediate recognition, and temporary peace. But over time, I noticed something important: the victories were shallow, the peace fleeting, and the growth minimal. They lacked the depth of resilience, the quiet power of self-respect, and the profound satisfaction that comes from knowing you endured, you learned, and you became someone stronger. Choosing hardship is not glamorous. It is not celebrated in real-time. It is often lonely, exhausting, and demanding. But it is transformative. It shapes your mind, your heart, and your spirit in ways comfort never can. It teaches discipline, patience, humility, and courage. It makes failure meaningful, effort valuable, and success earned. The hard path is where true people are made—people who understand that life’s challenges are not punishments, but opportunities. Opportunities to become better, stronger, wiser, and more capable. I never chose the easy path. I always chose the harder road, the one that tested me, the one that demanded effort, and the one that required me to face myself honestly. I walked through fear, doubt, exhaustion, and setbacks. I fell, and I got up. I failed, and I tried again. I cried, I questioned, I endured. And through it all, I became someone I could respect, someone who knew the value of persistence, someone who understood that hardship is not the enemy—it is the greatest teacher. Today, I measure success differently. I do not measure it by comfort, convenience, or ease. I measure it by growth, resilience, and the depth of self-respect I have cultivated. I measure it by how I faced challenges I could not ignore, how I embraced struggles that seemed unbearable, and how I refused to take shortcuts at the cost of my own becoming. I never chose the easy path. I chose the one that made me resilient. I chose the one that taught me self-respect. I chose the one that allowed me to become the person I am today. And if I had the choice again, I would choose the hard path every single time. Because the road of struggle is not only a journey—it is the making of a human being.writing...
By Ihtisham Ulhaq2 days ago in Motivation
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