If today is terrible

[I] guess this kind of rainy Monday would have really gotten Karen Carpenter down.

Maybe it’s got you down, too.

Maybe you’ve had to deal with rejection.

Been there.

“After careful consideration, our Fiction Editorial Team decided that, while we enjoyed reading your submission, your piece is not a good fit…”

Then there was this one:

“We have read your submission, and unfortunately we are not able to use it…”

If you’re keeping score at home, it’s Magazines 2, Casey 0.

There have been bigger comebacks.

The 2-0 gap may grow wider every time I take a chance and hit send, but I’d have no chance to closeit if I didn’t try.

It’s the same with you.

Maybe you’ve got a heartache.

I’m sorry.

You are valuable, you are important and you have a purpose.

I won’t pretend to know how you feel or what caused the hurtin your heart, but I know the pain.

A heartache is, as Gary Allan once sang, “a serious injury.”

It’s a problem with no prescription, except prayer and time.

Somebody said time heals all wounds, but there’s notimetable for how long it takes.

You are hurt. You will heal.

While you do, it is important you know your worth. It’s critical you know you’re loved.

You are valuable, you are important and you have a purpose.

The reason for your heartache may not realize just how much you have to offer, but you cannot forget it.

 Maybe you’re inschool, and maybe you feel stuck striving toward adulthood in an age whenpeople live for likes.

I’ll be the first to tell you I’m glad I didn’t have tonavigate my high school halls worried about how many followers I had.

High school had enough trouble of its own.

It took me longer to learn what I’m about to tell you than Icare to admit, but life is not about likes and it does fly by just as fast aspeople tell you it will.

Let me tell you something about the people you say are yourfriends, and the others you spend a bunch of time and effort to try to impress.

Some will stand the test of time, but most will sway likesmall trees when the wind blows.

A few are true. A lot are fake. Most will turn into memories.

Don’t change your standards for anyone, because there’ssomeone made to meet them.

Be yourself. Don’t worry if you’re different.

I’m different, too, and I spent way too much time and effort to try to fit into the mold others considered normal before I figured out normal is way overrated.

Be yourself. Don’t worry if you’re different.

This is supposed to be a letter to a stranger who is in themiddle of a bad day, but I’m not sure it qualifies.

It’s true, maybe we haven’t met. It’s also true we have alot in common, you and me.

Our lives are not always roses and rainbows. The glass doesn’talways look half full.

 Rain falls oneverybody.

It can drown us if we let it, but it can also help us grow.  

We all have rainy days, and sometimes they get us down. Sometimes, though, they help us get back on the top of the world.