There are many times when I felt that I had no voice, so today I speak because I can!

When I sat down to write this, the last of the 25 articles and stories of “It is What it Is I had no idea that these were the words I was going to write, they just came pouring out. I haven’t written anything quite in this way before, and may never again

I speak, for the little girl who feels unloved, abandoned and alone, who sits in her bed, staring at the door knob, willing it not to turn

I speak for the little girl who looks at the empty fridge, who knows what she must do to get money for food

I speak for the little girl who is tired of cooking and cleaning, and looking after her sibling

I speak for the big sister standing in the playground, staring down the big bully who’s beating up her brother

I speak for the school girl whose works swims around her head, who’s too tired and broken to remember what is said

I speak for the young woman who is aware of what it takes to survive, who has never once had the thought that she was born to thrive

I speak for the young woman who they all think is a fool, for walking away from her education, for not finishing school

I speak for the young woman who sees catching a man as the way to a better life, her best exit plan

I speak for the young mother who heartbroken takes off her wedding band when it is all over, wondering, wishing, hoping she’ll recover

I speak for the mother who sits at night all alone, thinking she can’t do this, she can’t bring them up on her own, who in the morning she gets up with a sigh, starts her day all over, she just has to get by

I speak for the waitress checking her tips and her cheques, counting her money, life is always such a stretch

I speak for the woman who is weary to the bone, wondering if she is doing enough to keep her home

I speak for the woman who has considered abortion, terminating now a possible solution

I speak for the mistress whose morals are torn between love and comfort, and knowing it’s wrong

I speak for the woman who is emotionally bettered, with low self-esteem her confidence shattered, listening to the voices of how it should have been

I speak for the mother whose selfless decisions unbelievably come back to bite her, who with little energy left to fight, pulls herself up from her corner to do what is right

I speak for the woman, that one who does more, more than she’s asked to, because she’s determined to get her foot in the door

I speak for the woman whose tears flow night after night, and who rises at morning her eyes filled with love and light

I speak for the woman who nurses her loved ones all through the night, who faces the day with energy and love, never minding her tiredness or lamenting her plight

I speak for the woman betrayed and heartbroken, lies and deceit and words left unspoken, who’s picking up the pieces with her attitude open

I speak for the woman who has lost it all, she watched every cent as it painfully marched right out of the door

I speak for the woman whose friends and family now pour on the scorn, who will today face this fight, continuing on without much respite, who holds on so tight to that last drop of love in her heart

I speak for the woman who embraces her journey, who accepts and forgives the mistakes and embraces her growth

I speak for the woman who picks up her pen, writes down her story, and faithfully starts over again

I speak for the woman who found real love through her trial, whose husband stood beside her, against all the odds, at her darkest hour

I speak for the woman who has made it at last, who challenged the odds when she had to face her past, the woman you know, the one that held her ground

I speak for the woman, the one who wants more, to say that she can, there is always something worth winning for

I speak for all these women today because I can, for each of these women is me and I am

Stand up if you’re a woman who really wants more! Stare down that challenge, open the door and stand up for the life you know you deserve. Accept the rewards, they’re on the way to you, after all, you have served

I wrote this under inspiration – it flowed out of me and it felt amazing to write it down and then read it out loud to myself. I am proud that my experiences have blessed me with the right to speak for women who have experienced something similar to what I did.

As I complete my 25 It Is What It Is series of stories about my experiences, my trials, my tribulations, my successes, my failures, my life and so much more, the way I want you to always think of me, is that I am human. You too have feelings about yourself physically, intellectually, socially, emotionally and professionally. You have an opinion about everything too. Through everything you think, feel, display, create and experience there is nothing but you and it is this you which you either reject or accept, love or hate – it’s all up to you. That’s right, you exist and you are uniquely, magnificently, beautifully and powerfully you – that’s all you ever need to remember. Given this, your worth is determined by you and you alone and you do not need to explain yourself or your self-worth to anyone, ever!

Always know and remember this – your worthiness has nothing to do with your behaviours, your feelings or your past results. Although you may not like what you did (your behaviours) in the past, what you did and how you did this has nothing to do with your self-worth. You can choose today, right here, right now, that you are worthy and deserving, because you are – of absolutely everything that there is and more – so make the choice, the decision to be worthy to yourself forever!

Every situation described in all my stories, I somehow created – and only when I understood, connected with and took full responsibility for this, did my world change. That allowed me to forgive myself, to forgive others and to move to where I now am – a point where I can now openly and triumphantly say that I love myself and therefore,

My greatest lesson is, that I AM LOVE…

Who are you?

To your Success, with love

Suzanne Styles