Hey there, let's talk frankly.

You think you're behind in life?
Well, that's because you probably are. I mean, aren't we all? This adulting business is much more complicated than we thought it would be. You think you have all the answers and then BAM, just like that, you're a full-out adult with real responsibilities. You may have chosen a different path when you feel like you should have chosen a more productive path, but hey, the clock keeps ticking for as long as you do. You may be behind, but you're not out.

You think you're a bad parent?
Well, get in line, we all do.
This parenting business is much more complicated than when we were little, playing house with our dolls. The only worry we had then was whether the Cabbage-Patch doll was being mean to the My-Child doll, or if Ms Wrinkles was sleeping past her nap time. Being an actual parent with actual children - not the hypothetical kind - can feel overwhelming at best. Cut yourself some slack. You're raising human beings. I can't think of a harder job than that.

You think you're a lousy partner?
Well, maybe you are, and maybe you aren't. Or maybe you're just too darn tired to make the bed or cook a delicious healthy meal for your family. Or maybe you forgot a birthday or to say I love you. Or maybe the stresses of life are building up and you don't have anything left to give right now. But right now isn't forever. It's only right now. Talk to your partner, sort it out, and move forward.

You think you're a crappy employee?
Don't we all have those moments? Those times when you're so distracted with home life that it spills into your workday? Those times when you call in sick even though you aren't because you just have to take a break from the real world and nothing can replenish you like binge-watching some whatever show on Netflix? Yeah, those moments. And you're allowed to take those moments without guilt or fret because life can feel like juggling machetes.

You think you're too fat? Too skinny? Too busy? Too hermit-like? Too hyper? Too anxious? Not smart enough? Not pretty enough? Not human enough?

You think you suck at this life?
Well, think again.

You're here and you're trying.
You're working at either a paid job, a non-paid job, or both.
You're a parent or a caregiver and man, is that ever tough.
You're putting your best foot first, even if it's not every day - because it doesn't need to be every single day.
You are someone somebody loves and calls you mom, or dad, or family, or friend.
You are important to one or all of the above.

You are you. And there is no other you. You are in control and you get to call the shots around here.

You can relinquish your power or pick it up with a strong arm and hold it over your head like a sword, ready for battle.

You can dwell in your self-pity - as I have done on numerous occasions - or you can bask in it a bit and then drain the tub and do something about it.

We have all had those moments when we feel like we aren't good enough at something. We wait for something to fall in our laps as graciously as they do in the movies.

But we aren't in the movies; we're in real life.
And the beauty about real-life is that we can keep rewriting our story until we're satisfied.

Pick up the sword, hold it with pride and allow yourself to be You.

Post Originally Appeared on Facebook