Okay so I’m not big on TV and I haven’t watched a lot of the show “X Factor” but I remember watching a clip from one of the episodes of this girl who was severely bullied in school, singing this absolutely beautiful song.  At the end of her performance, one of the judges said to her “all those people that bullied you are at home watching you on TV”.  That video and sentence are the things that inspired me to do what I do.  To me, being successful is the best form of revenge.

When I was younger I thought that revenge meant something more physical such as writing songs like Taylor Swift.  Sure, it can be effective but that’s a lot of time to waste on someone just to let them know you hate them.  And it’s not really satisfying.  Unless of course you become a super star like Taylor Swift did, but the chances of that are very slim.  But of course nothing is impossible.

Anyway, I’m not auditioning for a TV show (a least not yet), but there are things you can do to be successful and above your enemies.  That doesn’t mean you have to think you’re “better than them”, but it is a good mindset to have.  I once witnessed someone say (and I quote) “I’m better than you” to another person and it was probably one of the cruelest things I’ve ever heard in my life.  So please, don’t ever think or say that to someone because that’s definitely not what this post is about.

In the title of this post I used the word “revenge”, but I've decided not to call it that.  The word “revenge” implies that the focus is on the other person, when really it’s about your gain of power.  Plus it sounds really violent and the last thing the world needs is more violence.  So I prefer to use the word “satisfaction”, which can mean “what is owed or due to one, especially in reparation of injustice or wrong”.  Before I actually figured out how much better satisfaction was than revenge……well, I don’t like to think about that time in my life.

So when you’re really angry at someone, it’s hard to think properly, isn’t it?  All you can think about is how much you want them to “pay” or whatever.  But the truth is, that isn’t always the best way to go about revenge, because it doesn’t always work out the way you want it to, and usually you do more work than what it’s worth.  And if you’re being honest with yourself, you’re not satisfied in the end.  That’s right, there’s the key word again.

You might be thinking “well you’re saying all this stuff about being satisfied, but how do I get satisfaction”?  See here’s the lesson it took me so long to learn: it’s not about what you do to them personally, it’s about being the bigger person.  I know, you’ve probably heard that from your mom a million times, but it’s what makes all the difference.  Notice how I said “bigger” and not “better”.  I never said to be better than them because I just don’t promote that stuff.

                How can you be the bigger person when you’re only 5’3”?  If you were fortunate enough to be tall then lucky you, but just like when people ask me how in the world I managed to shove someone who’s over 6 feet into a wall, it’s not really about your physical abilities.  If that were the case, I wouldn’t even be writing this right now.  Being the bigger person means no matter what the other person does, you handle it like a pro.  That means not taking the revenge route, but not letting them bring you down.  A strong person doesn’t do this in an act of hatred, but in small acts of dignity.

                So to sum up all this up in one sentence: don’t get revenge, find satisfactory in being the bigger person, not the better person.

Hey guys, so this is going to be a short and sweet post but since I haven’t posted in a while I just kind of wanted to give you an update on where I’m at in life and the things that have prevented me from blogging.

So first off, I was working pretty much full time this summer.  I got an awesome job at such an awesome place and I just want to take a minute to say that while I was working there, it never really felt like “work”.  I didn’t do it for the money really (although it did help tremendously with my college fund haha), but more because I just loved being surrounded by good people in a good work environment.  So I spent most of my summer there and it was very exhausting sometimes and by the time I got home, I never really felt like writing a blog post to be completely honest with you.  But since I’ll be starting school this coming week, I won’t be working as much, even though I sincerely wish I could. But unfortunately there just aren’t enough hours in a day.

I don’t think I’ve ever shared this on my blog before, but for those of you that don’t know, I am going into my 5^th year in 4-H.   Being a member of 4-H has been such a wonderful experience and I can’t even begin to tell you about all the amazing things I’ve done and the great people I’ve met.  The summer is always a busy time for 4-H members because the first week of July is probably one of my favorite weeks out of the year because it’s fair week.  That’s right, the loud music, fried food, big rides…..that may be your idea of the fair, but for a 4-H member it means getting your projects done in time, making sure you have all your paperwork filled out for your animal, and being in the big white barns 24/7.  All that is a lot more work than what it seems, but it does pay off.  I’ve met so many amazing people and gained a lot of leadership experience that has been so useful to have.  So if you’re interested and have any questions about the program, feel free to ask me and I’ll answer them to the best of my ability!  You can also go to 4-h.org for more information.

Along with those things, there have also been some personal things I’ve been going through over the last few months.  I’m not quite ready to name any specific details because I’m still in the healing process.  If you’ve ever dealt with something traumatic then you know what it’s like.  One day you don’t think about it at all then the next thing you know you can’t get rid of the thoughts.  Every day is different.  When you wake up you never know what that day will bring, but you can learn to control those thoughts if they come.  It’s a lot easier said than done, but that’s why it takes time.  Everyone heals differently, and for me it takes a long time for the scars to be completely washed away.  So that’s where I’m at right now.  But the past few weeks have been so much better than a month ago, so I’m very pleased with the progress I’ve made so far and hopefully it will only continue to go up from here.

The last thing I want to talk about in this little update is some changes I’m going to make.  I already wrote a post about change awhile back, but these changes aren’t really changes that happen on the outside, but more like changes on the inside.  When the school year started, I decided there were some things I need to do differently.  The first one of those changes is right here on my blog.  I don’t want the posts to be months apart, but I can’t really commit to doing a weekly schedule during the school year.  So for now, I’ve just decided to post as often as I can.  Sometimes it will be weekly, sometimes it will be every other week, and it will always be on different days.  I’ve decided that this is the best way to stay committed, and so I don’t feel pressured to post on a certain day.  So hopefully I can make some good posts for you to read and still post them often.

Another thing that I just started doing is being healthier in general.  I’ve never really been unhealthy, but I downloaded an app called “Lifesum”, which helps you make sure you’re eating healthy and drinking enough water.  It’s such a nice and helpful thing so if you’re looking to lose or gain weight, or just want to maintain your health, this app is so helpful.  I’m not becoming a “health freak” or anything like that, but eating a balanced diet is important, not only physically but mentally too.  I will let you know more about how that’s going in a few weeks, but so far it’s helped me make a lot healthier food choices and made me realize how dehydrated I was!

The last thing I want to mention before I go is my photography.  I haven’t taken a lot of pictures recently, and I think that was mostly because there’s not really anything interesting at my house to take pictures of (except of course when I’m out somewhere), and the camera I have isn’t the best, but I’m going to try to work a lot harder on that during the school year, so if you want to see the pictures I take, you can go to my photography page on this blog, and make sure to follow my photography page on Instagram (@a_moment_in.time) and like my Facebook page (under Megan’s Photography or @megan’s.photography17).  Hopefully there will be some great pictures coming soon!

This was a lot longer than I expected but thank you for sticking with me over my break and reading all my posts.  Your support means so much and I hope to write some good stuff for you to read in the future!