Two Things Can Be True at Once

May Edition

I feel like I’ve lived a lifetime.

Maybe two.

And I’m not even 40 yet.

And the reason I say that is because life has thrown me almost every lemon that exists.

And I’m still here.

Not just here.

On the other side of it.

That’s why I love what I do.

Being a therapist.

A social worker.

A life coach.

Because I don’t just talk about healing.

I lived it.

Let’s Be Real

Every single person walking this earth has experienced trauma.

Some people just hide it better.

Some people just learned how to function through it.

And some people…

Turn those lemons into something sweet.

And if I am being honest.

That wasn’t always me.

There was a time I just took the lemons…

And became bitter.

Sour.

Closed off.

Because someone who was already bitter and sour hurt me.

And I thought that’s just how people were.

That’s what most of us do.

We get hurt once.

And then we move like everyone is the same.

Perspective Changed Everything

The only difference between staying stuck in trauma and growing through it…

Is perspective.

Seeing the lemon as a lesson.

Not a life sentence.

Seeing it as something that’s evolving you.

Not destroying you.

And when that shift happens…

You get something back that was always yours.

Your freedom.

Your creativity.

Your whole self.

And that feeling…

Is peace.

I’ve Always Been Two Things at Once

If you really knew me growing up…

You’d be confused.

Because I’ve always been two extremes.

On one side…

I was the quiet one.

The smart one.

The girl with her head on straight.

And on the other side…

I was goofy.

A fighter.

Around people and things I had no business being around.

Two completely different worlds.

And I lived in both.

Where It Started

I experienced extremes early.

On one side, I had my mom.

My first teacher.

The one who made me fall in love with reading and writing.

We played games.

We learned together.

We had real moments as a family.

And then on the other side…

I was being introduced to things no child should be introduced to.

Sex.

Drugs.

Alcohol.

Stealing.

Lying.

So imagine that.

Straight A student.

Getting suspended for fighting.

That was me.

Even My Mind Was Extreme

And even now, as a healer…

I can look back and see how many things I’ve experienced mentally.

Depression.

Anxiety.

OCD.

ADHD.

Moments where I’ve probably touched every label people use to define someone.

Not because I wanted to.

But because I lived life in extremes.

And I’m not saying that lightly.

I’m saying that because it’s the truth.

But Here’s What I Know Now

Back then, I didn’t know how to process what I was going through.

So those lemons…

Sometimes they made me sour.

Sometimes they made me react.

Sometimes they made me choose things that didn’t reflect who I truly was.

But I also know this.

At every stage of my life…

I was doing the best I could with what I had.

And that matters.

The Shift

Now I see myself as whole.

Not good.

Not bad.

Whole.

And that saying…the grass is greener on the other side?

It is.

But only because I decided to water it.

I started watering me.

My mind.

My peace.

My truth.

Because life is always going to throw lemons.

Fines.

Car issues.

Loss.

Disappointment.

That part doesn’t stop.

But now…

I always make something sweet out of it.

Full Circle

I’ve lived a life that came full circle in ways I never imagined.

I went from needing a public defender…

To working in the public defender’s office.

From being on probation…

To becoming a probation officer.

From needing a therapist my whole life…

To becoming one.

And the truth is…

I’ve always been one.

I just didn’t have the degree or license yet.

This Is Where It Gets Real

It’s May.

Mental Health Awareness Month.

And if I can give you one real tip…

It’s this.

Get aware of yourself.

That’s it.

Not everybody else.

Not what they did.

Not what they said.

You.

Because awareness is where everything starts.

And real awareness means accepting all of you.

The good.

The bad.

The ugly.

Because until you own all of you…

You will stay stuck.

In what I call dis-ease.

Two Sides Isn’t the Problem

We all have two sides.

Maybe more.

That’s life.

That’s humanity.

That’s why this season feels like me.

May starts Gemini season.

The sign with two sides.

But the problem isn’t having two sides.

The problem is rejecting one of them.

Because what you reject…

Will always control you.

Happy Mother’s Day

My mom was my first teacher.

And even with everything I experienced in life…

She planted something in me that never left.

Love for learning.

Love for expression.

Love for becoming more.

And I carry that with me every day.

Why Do We Keep Choosing What We Know Isn’t Right

Because familiar feels like truth.

Even when it’s not.

You can feel when something is off.

You can feel when a choice isn’t aligned.

But when you keep choosing it anyway…

It stops being a moment.

And starts becoming a pattern.

Then the pattern becomes your lifestyle.

Then your lifestyle becomes your identity.

And now…

You’re not just experiencing the cycle.

You’re continuing it.

We are born looking like our family…

But we die looking like our choices.

What Is the Truth That Sets You Free

Two things can be true at once.

You can have a past…

And still choose differently.

You can feel fear…

And still move forward.

You can have experienced both sides…

And still create balance.

The best of both worlds is not choosing one side.

It’s learning how to live in truth with all of you.

Ci Notes

Affirmation: I am aware of my patterns, and I choose growth over familiarity.

Reflection Questions:

• Where in my life am I choosing what feels familiar over what feels right?

• What would it look like for me to experience life in a different way?

Final Truth: Familiar doesn’t mean aligned… it just means practiced.