The Thorns Remain

by Jennifer Hartmann

“Roses Fall, But The Thorns Remain”

“Truly beautiful things are like that sometimes, though, aren’t they?” She takes my hand and lays it on top of the washcloth, indicating I should keep it there. “They can cut you… they can make you bleed. But that’s how you know you’re alive.”

“There’s a Korean proverb that says, “At the end of hardship comes happiness.”

“I always knew when it was coming because I’d get this feeling in my belly, this tight knot of intuition, and I knew it was a sign that I was over the hump. It was the light at the end of the dark road.”

“Everything about you is attractive… especially your scars.” Crawling up the length of her, I pause when we’re face-to-face, propping myself up with my arms to hold her gaze. “It means you survived something terrible. It means you’re stronger than whatever tried to break you.”

Growth is uncomfortable… but getting uncomfortable is the only way to grow.

“I will never, ever believe in the words "too late" because it is never too late to be exactly who you wish, do exactly what you should, say exactly what needs to be heard, and live the exact life you should be living.” ― Tyler Knott Gregson ―

“You can’t choose what life throws at you,” she said. “You can only choose how you react to it.”

Life isn’t about what we deserve. It’s about what we choose. And sometimes life makes choices for us, choices that hurt, and that’s terrible and heart-rending, but we have the choice to let it break us or to persevere. To become stronger.

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