Some Rambling About Insecurity, Friends, and Who I am

Having just started high school I'm subject to the regular insecurities that girls my age face, most of them having to do with appearance, what I do, and the words that come out of my mouth.  So pretty much anything and everything.  Trust me, I know about all the support and the be who you want to be and don't let anyone stop you campaign and I myself give that speech almost every day, but for some reason none of that can completely abolish the little critical voice in my head.  I think everyone has that voice, we're born with it, but some have learned to put it away or just told it to shut the f*#@ up, and others let it quietly abuse them.  I don't place myself on either ends of that spectrum, because I try to be pretty confident, and part of putting all this online is helping me build that confidence.

Some might say that because I also suffer from this insecurity that I'm not someone who should really be giving advice on the subject, but I do have some things to say.  The first thing is that you are most affected by the people around you. They are the ones that are going to make you smile or cry when you get home, and they are the ones who should respect you and like you for who you are, not who you try to be.  So let those people be people that make you feel good about yourself. They should make you want to be yourself because that is who they like you for.  Around them you should feel comfortable in your own skin, and happy with what you're feeling.  They shouldn't exclude you because of what you wear or how you act, and if they do, they aren't your friends because that isn't what friends do.

In my life I've been given a great gift, the gift of some truly amazing friends.  For several years I was surrounded by some of the most caring and accepting people who helped me to really see what was good about myself, which helped me make others feel good about themselves.  This doesn't mean I've reached that full level of being comfortable with myself, but I've made so much progress.  So even though I now go to a new school, and a lot of those people had started to not be as much of a large part of my life, their influences will always be part of who I am, and I wish that for everyone on this earth.