"Don't Stop Me- Be"

It is not easy to love yourself.
To see yourself through the eyes of others, to be aware of the sneaky little ways in which you hurt other people, to accept that you might never be rid of your selfishness �" these are not easy things to do.

To believe that your voice deserves to be heard, that you have a perspective that is uniquely human and part of something bigger than you, and finally that you have the right to be happy, along with everyone else �" these are downright difficult, especially when your parents, friends, enemies, strangers, or the whole world tell you otherwise.

I don’t think I love myself, not really, not yet. While I was young I did not experience love, and I had anything but someone to teach me how to love myself. There is a years-long story I won’t tell here of a broken family and a quiet kid who internalized all the suffering until it scrambled him up inside and he very nearly broke. Before you are moved to pity, listen; it was through suffering that I learned about happiness, through the void inside my heart that I learned about love �" this is how I am answering the prompt. My challenge, bestowed upon me by others who were also broken, was to realize that love is an option.

No, it is not easy to love yourself. In fact, it is probably the most difficult of all our options, and maybe I’m just hard-headed and always looking for the next fruitless struggle, but I believe that the best way for me to learn to love and help others, as a journalist or whatever else I may end up doing, starts here.

Author's Note

I wrote this to answer a contest prompt, " What challenge have you overcome that has prepared you for college?"
My primary goal here is to hear your thoughts on my perspective, whether or not it aligns with your perspective, and maybe overall what self-love means to you - however if you liked the essay and feel willing to put your name and (maybe a fake) email down (here : https://www.wyzant.com/scholarships/voting/143544) that could help me get the votes I need and give me a shot at staying in college for longer than three semesters! I would greatly greatly appreciate it!!