I'm the Cinderella that forgot to drop her glass slipper.

A year ago I would have told you my life was perfect. I had everything going for me. I was a senior in high school, I would be graduating, and I was planning on going to prom. I had the perfect dress, the perfect hair, and that night I felt like a million dollars. After prom came graduating, something that every student dreams of. On that night when my name was called and I walked towards the stage I had no idea where I would be standing one year later. I had endless possibilites and dreams high as the sky. Well, it's been almost a year since all those events occured. Is my life where I thought it would be? Absolutely not. In my opinion if I could sum up this past year I would put it as simply as saying, "If you're not growing you're not learning, and if you're not learning you're not growing."  I have learned so much this past year. Life after high school isn't all it's cracked up to be. It's full of responsibility, finals, college, jobs, family, and maintaining friendships. It's a constant struggle of trying to be grown-up while still managing to feel like a kid. It's not the easiest transition. I have been hurt, I have been broken, and I have been beaten down by the cruelty of reality. I stand before you today to tell you one thing I have learned about the "after" moment of the struggle: IT. GETS. EASIER. Life gets easier. Making decisions and being responsible gets easier. If you're heart was broken I promise you one day after much time and much praying that you will wake up and your heart won't miss that person anymore. In a dramatic movie through a dramatic song Celine Dion told us that the heart does go on. It does. Though I may not have traveled the path I had planned, and although I have had many bumps along the way, I know I am exactly where I should be.