Stop worrying about the potholes & start enjoying the journey.

So this was a HUGE vent post when I started it. An "I can't wait til you wake up one day & the real world & real life has smacked you in the face & you realize that the world does not revolve around you & your 22 year old I know everything, look at me & give me attention NOW attitude" vent. But, alot of my issue with this one person has to do with how dramatic, sullen & negative they are. So I'm changing it. Instead, I'm gonna go this route.

I'm thankful for my life, my childhood, the trials and tribulations that have brought me to this point in my life, to the person that I am today.
I'm thankful that my parents divorced before I was 3 years old. I never had to see them argue, not even once. I learned that giving in doesn't mean your giving up.
I'm thankful that my grandpa spanked me when I hit my brother in the eye with a swing. It was the first & last time he ever did it and it was with a tear in his eye, but I learned that even though someone is mad at you, they still love you.
I'm thankful that at the age of 15 I held the hand of one of the most important people in my life and stood next to their bedside as they died. I learned about immortality at a time in my life where most people think they are invincible.
I'm thankful that when I turned 21 I wasn't able to go out & get drunk. I had to get some rest, I had a Dr appointment the next morning and I was going to see my unborn child on a sonogram for the first time ever. On a birthday that lots of people use to go out & celebrate being legal, I was celebrating the beginning of a new life.
I'm thankful that I 'married too young'. I've learned my lessons early and my future relationships will be more thought out, more carefully planned and I will know which battles are really worth fighting.
I'm thankful that I was raised by a single mom. Watching her has shown me that I'm strong, that I'm brave and I can do things on my own. I can raise my daughter to be a wonderful person, I watched my mom do the same with my brother & I.
I'm thankful that I've seen my mom at her worst. That I've had to go in the bathroom & help her pull her pants back up. That I've watched her crawl across a room because she can't walk. I thankful that I made the 8 hour drive to be able to spend one day with her after brain surgery, that I saw her with a shaved head and eyes so swollen that she couldn't see me. These things have taught me to value everyday with her. Every moment is precious in life and should not be taken for granted.

I'm thankful for all these things and more. I can't relate to 'give her a break, she's only 22' comments about this person that irked me so much today. I don't know what it's like to be 22, have hardly any bills, come & go as I please, jump between school and work with the confidence that mommy & daddy will bail me out of any money trouble I roll into. At 22 years old, I was the mom to a toddler, changing diapers, fighting to save a marriage, pinching pennies to make ends meet and coming to terms with the fact that my moms health was going downhill faster than I ever realized. And I wouldn't trade it for anything.