Some people would choose not to like us even if we surprised them with their dream vacation

I used to feel like I had to justify why people didn’t like me.

I hated hearing versions of stories I knew weren’t true. Or that wasn’t the *whole* truth, anyways.

I wanted to respond with why that wasn’t true.

I wanted to share the truth, the whole truth.

Screenshots and all.

I wanted to convince those who heard that version of how I’m not some evil person.

And then it hit me

Some people would choose not to like us even if we surprised them with their dream vacation and a check for a million dollars

The time and energy I was spending trying to defend myself, trying to explain why I was a good human

Was time and energy I didn’t have to *actually* go out and be a good human

It was stealing my joy and making me bitter. There are some people you could hand the keys to a brand new sports car or an envelope with a million dollars in it.

And they still wouldn’t like you just because you are Y O U.

Not to get all Rachel Hollis here… but somebody else’s opinion of me is none of my business.

I can’t force people to like me.

I can’t force people to tell the truth about me or their experiences with me.

I can’t force people to accept apologies, accept that I have grown since they knew me years ago, or admit that they are telling half-truths.

I’ll always be the villain in the eyes of some.

But in the eyes of so many others, I’m their friend, someone they can come to when they need someone, someone they can depend on

Or just simply the girl smiled at them at the grocery store.

And this way of living brings me much more happiness than bitterness or justification ever could.

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