The truth? I tried as hard as I could. I took as much as I could take. I put up with all I could. And it still wasn't enough.

I'm not that cute. I'm really shy when I meet someone new. I have the heart of a 7 year old. I can be socially awkward. I sometimes break out into dance when I hear a song I like. And you know what? You're just going to live with that because that is who I am.

A healthy relationship keeps the doors and windows wide open. Plenty of air is circulating and no one feels trapped. Relationships thrive in this environment. Keep your doors and windows open. If the person is meant to be in your life, all the open doors and windows in the world, will not make them leave. Trust that truth. 

In life we learn a lot of things. Which movie theaters have cup holders, which classmate is most reliable to cheat off of, how to give and take advice, how and why to love, which roads harbor hidden cops, times to laugh or cry, and which towns have your bank's branch. But among the most important things we learn is this; just because we argue doesn't mean there's no love, and just because we aren't related doesn't mean we aren't family.

"She belonged to me," he said simply. "She was, you know, all the things I wasn't. And I was all the things she wasn't. She could paint circles around anyone; I can't even draw a straight line. She was never into sports; I've always been." He lifted his outstreched palm and curled his fingers. "Her hand," he said, "it fit mine."

love doesn't always work. that's how life is. but there's a reason who everyone wants it so much. it's the closest thing we have to magic.

there's someone out there for everyone, except this is like the world's largest game of hide and go seek, and you bet that boy found the best hiding spot there and he's waiting for you to find him. or better yet, maybe he'll get tired of waiting and find you instead.

I just think that like, one day we should all just either shut the hell up or say everything that crosses our mind. So the world can either be a silent one or a chaotic one. Because I’m sick of the in-between one.

I guess, if anything, it's about taking chances, even when you think you're all out of chances. It's about giving forgiveness and unconditional love, even when it seems like you should only do the opposite. It's about trusting that God puts people in your life at certain moments so that you can capitalize the opportunity. It's all about the possibility. It's all about what you do with those possibilities. Life is short, but it moves so fast. Hang on and enjoy the ride. And when someone comes along with whom you enjoy spending the ride with, hold on tight.

I feel like people get lost when they think of happiness as a destination. We’re always thinking that someday we’ll be happy. You know, we’ll get that car or that job or that person in our lives that fixes everything. But happiness is a mood and a condition, it’s not a destination. It’s like being tired or hungry; it’s not permanent, it comes and goes, and that’s okay. And I feel like if people thought of it that way, they’d find happiness a lot more often.

I miss those midnight conversations. I miss how you would make me laugh out of my own frustration. But you just come to know that you get so used to being loved, and in one second it can all come crashing down. Now I know to not let anything get that far ever again, because I didn't know how I could wake up one morning and have it all hit me. I didn’t know I could miss you this much.

I want you to believe that this isn't your fault. i want you to know that it was all me. i'm not ready for someone like you. i'm not ready to accept my flaws because i know you love me regardless of them and that scares the hell out of me.

With you, I didn’t have to think twice or question myself. I kind of already knew what I wanted.

People always say that they don’t care what happens, they just want the one they love to be happy. I don’t know how many of those people mean it, but I’ve thought it through, and I know that I truly want you to be happy. I’ve prayed and analyzed and considered, and in the end, I would trade my happiness for yours. I would give every last bit of it for you, so that you would never have a bad day or a day filled with doubt. Even if you being happy means you’re not with me. I would still want you to have all the happiness in the world.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

Who you are is who you are. We're liars. We're thieves. We're addicts. We take our happiness for granted until we hurt ourselves or someone else. We hold grudges. And when faced with our mistakes, we reinvent the past. We reinvent ourselves. At least we try. We're prideful, and we're lustful, and we're incredibly flawed. And eventually, our flaws catch up to us.

and so, while the rest of the world went on unaware, drinking their coffee, reading the sports page, and picking up their dry cleaning, i leaned forward and kissed him, making a choice that would change everything. Maybe somewhere there was a ripple, a bit of a jump, some small shift in the universe, barely noticeable. i didn't feel it then. i felt only him kissing me back, easing into the sunlight as i lost myself in the taste of him and felt the world go on, just as it always had, all around us.

Wait for the person who pursues you, the one who will make an ordinary moment seem magical, the kind of person who brings out the best in you and makes you want to be a better person. Wait for the person who will be your best friend, the only person who will drop everything to be with you at any time no matter what the circumstances, for the person who makes you smile like no one else and when they smile you know they need you. Wait for the person who wants to show you off to the world when you are in sweats and a t-shirt, but appreciates it when you get dressed up for them. And most of all wait for the person who will put you at the center of their universe, because that's where you belong.

So don't let the world bring you down. Not everyone here is that fucked up and cold. Remember why you came and while you're alive, experience the warmth before you grow old.

Everyone's wondering where she gets that smile from when everything in her life is looking so downhill. Everyone's wondering how she can be so happy when it seems like her world is falling apart. Everyone's wondering how she can keep on laughing when she's doing things against her own will. Everyone's wondering how she can light up a room, when he just broke her heart.

He's gorgeous, but gorgeous is an understatement. More like you're startled every time you see him and you stare in amazement, just wondering how anyone could make your stomach produce butterflies in such a small amount of time.

Follow the tugs in your heart. i think that everyone gets these gentle urges and should listen to them. Even if they sound absolutely insane, they may be worth going for.

Before I knew you, I was like a completely different person. Not even a person, really. I had seen what love could do to people, and it was hurt and sadness. Alone was better. And then, suddenly there was you, and you knew me. You saw me, and it was this thing. You make me feel safe and warm. So, I get it now. I finally get love, I really do.

I liked the days when boys were written down on paper listed on your top 5, instead of you carrying them in your heart. When you would brag about how cool your parents were, instead of talking about how they now ruin your lives. When the only reason you didn’t want to get out of bed for school was because you were sleepy, and now it’s because each day is a struggle. While hide and seek was the coolest game, instead of guys seeing how many girls they can go out with at one time. When you wished upon birthday candles, and now you wish on a boy who is holding your heart. The days when you were just a kid who still had their innocence, and now you’re a teenager who knows everything has changed.

The other day i woke up smiling. Not because you were next to me, or because the smell of your hoodie made me melt, but because when we were young, you promised me one thing: you'd never leave me, and you didn't.

I’m the girl people always ask whats wrong, because since I’m usually so happy, I’ts obvious when I’m sad. But I’m also the girl that always bounces back, no matter what, even if sometimes it takes a while. I’m the girl that’s always going to love herself even if that boy doesn’t.

No matter how much we fight, I always end up with a smile on my face.

So, I guess we are who we are for a lot of reasons. And maybe we'll never know most of them. But even if we don't have the power to choose where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there. We can still do things. And we can try to feel okay about them.