"I can do hard things"

I cannot believe how many difficult things this mantra has gotten me through. 

This phrase started to jump around in my head sometime around when I was 16 or 17 years old. I was going through a very difficult time in my life and brought several challenges unto myself. I really didn't know any better. I had lost direction and didn't have many on my side. Not that anyone was against me, I just blended into the scenery. I can't say I was ever depressed because I wasn't. I was just unsure of how to exist. So many times I was faced with difficult choices. There was one or two people I could have confided my problems to but I've always wanted to be the type of girl who dealt with her problems on her own; independently. One day I heard/saw/read (I can't remember) "I can do hard things". It resonated with me so strongly. I can remember several instances of me just bawling my eyes out, one thing always came to mind. "I can do hard things". I would whisper it to myself until I could physically get up and dry my tears and continue on with whatever needed to be done. This is something that has been useful to me in adulthood as well. Now days I find myself saying it when I'm frustrated or feel like I have what seems like an unobtainable goal or task at hand. During the birth of my second child, I learned just how moving positive affirmations can be. I repeated many variations of "This is great". Over and over again. I had the hospital staff say it and I had Cameron say it. It helped me to achieve my medication free birth I had wanted so much. 

Having a positive attitude can change your life. 

When I pray, I ask God to lessen my burden of emotions. I often pray for this for other people as well. When I see Cameron sad or disappointed, I ask God to help him get through the sadness or the disappointment. When I feel angry I ask God to show me a constructive way to channel my anger. When I'm stressed I ask for him to lesson my stress. Rarely do I pray for specific things to happen anymore. I thank him for my family. I ask for his help in keeping my family and myself safe. I count my blessings (because I have many, even if my life isn't exactly how I'd imagined it), I pray for strength to deal with situations myself. I tell myself, "I can do hard things." I feel like that has helped me give myself to God more than I was before.