It Rained On My Parade 7:37 AM

There's no such thing as a well-planned getaway if Mother Nature states her say on the matter. 

The whole Anawangin trip was a highly anticipated highlight of the summer. On the 2nd of June 2012, me and three of my friends, made our way out of the city only to experience prolly one of the most memorable trips we've ever had.

The Tributes [Photo By: Criz Tan]

 

 

At this point, I would like to refer to us (a group of four) as The Tributes.

Lesson 1: Having an incredibly late trip-mate has its perks

One of my fellow Tributes came late, 'nuff said (see: Khreanne Manez). Sure, it caused early freak out gestures and early blood boiling incidents but it was our ticket to ending up riding with our icredibly cool tour guides.

It saved us from being forced inside a packed van hence, our ride was smooth and fun. Not to mention the weird playlist all ride long.

One of the above people is the late Tribute [Photo By: Criz Tan]

Lesson 2: Like Adele's ex, the sun can change it's mind, too

 

On the way to Zambales, sure the sun was promising. It was so promising, I could marry it right away. But yeah, soon as Adele started hitting with Someone Like You, the weather changed and our lives were never the same since then.

Lesson 3: Rain is not the enemy, the sea waves are

I am pertaining to the boat ride to Anawangin. All I can remember is my stomach performing an encore of Somersaults: The Musical.

The waves were dangerously... high, like hey-bitch-pray-for-your-soul-already level of high. Still, my love for nature won out. I belted out Florence and the Machine's Shake It Out as I appreciated the islands we passed by and no, not a single fuck was given that day.

Lesson 3: When it rains, so be it 

Yes, when it rains, it pours but really? When you're a busy person allowed to have a break out of the city, there's nothing else you can do with rain but make the most out of it.

We did.

Sure, the endless rain somehow frustrated my fellow Tributes and also me at some point. But it doesn't mean we cannot have fun while cursing the rain in the process.

So, despite the rainy thing going on, we attacked the sea! Like, we literally fought the huge waves approaching us as if we were the Pinoy version of Ninja Turtles.

Excuse me as I smile at this because who would have thought that swimming in the ocean while it was raining so hard could be so much fun?

I mean, some would have spent their day with long faces because the vacation was practically ruined but there we are... fighting the waves like our lives depended on it.

It was the most fun I've had in a while and honestly, playing in the rain like that could easily take your mind off things.

And so with this experience, we felt as though we are in a real-life Catching Fire scene (yes, from the book!). All the rain and the camping experience, man, that was tough. Call me crazy but after that, I was ready to hang a sign: I was reborn, bitches. Deal with it. Believe me, hell, it was challenging.

Lesson 4: Never, ever, let the broken hearted mix the drinks (Lesson 4.1: Boracay Rhum is a heartless, insensitive bitch) 

Three shots of the Rachel Makayan Mix were all it took for Criz Tan to raise her hands and say, "I surrender."

Kidding.

She didn't raise her hands and all but she did hit the tent grounds after three shots.

Blame it on the Rachel Makayan Mix - we shall put that mix to rest.

One of the above people is the pioneer of THE RACHEL MAKAYAN MIX; and one is the LIGHTWEIGHT

Lesson 5: Friends are absolutely a must-bring in getaways 

I mean, it was dark and our only source of light was a flashlight we borrowed from a fellow cast away (applause to the Tom Hanks reference!!!) but when things got a little serious and when things got a little teary, it's nice to have friends who know how to listen.

It's in moments like that that I am thankful for being a person who's emotionally capable of vulnerability and being surrounded by people who are equally capable as well.

Matters of the heart. Matters of the heart.

As for the gory details, that should be kept secret.

What happens in Anawangin, stays in Anawangin.

Lesson 6: A swarm of frogs could give the cast of Glee a run for its money 

SERIOUSLY!!!

Forgive me as I freak out once again. I'm a girl who grew up in the city. I didn't know frogs could make noises like that!!!

While we were practically drowning our livers, the sound of nature served as our music and yeah, the sound of nature includes the Frog Chorus. It's crazy!!!

Are they really frogs, you ask me?

I ask myself the same thing.

Lesson 7: It's Always Darkest Before the dawn 

True enough, after we have retreated from our liver-burning-through-alcohol session, the bitch also known as the typhoon came attacking again.

It was scary and at the same time funny because sleeping inside a tent that was shaking madly could make you forget things.

I was lying on my back and watched as the roof of our tent shook madly because of the wind.

Try sleeping with a broken heart - that's how it felt like: it's impossible! (Applause to the Alicia Keys reference!!!)

Lesson 8: The Sun Will Rise 

Of course it will.

That's where we got to take pictures and all, walk around the island and enjoy some sort of an Earth benefit called the sun.

It was short-lived but hey, it was still fun. I had more fun with all the rain, though.

Ironic.

Lesson 9: Do not underestimate the force that sunk Titanic 

On the way back to Zambales, the waves were life-threatening. Like, seriously, my stomach performed a suspense-thriller version of Somersaults: The Musical.

The ride was fun, though. Except for the occasional screamo moments when the boat suddenly rocks hard, threatening to throw you off balance and have you eaten by the sharks under the sea.

Nah. There aren't sharks within the Philippine seas, at least that's what I believed growing up. But really, watching Jaws taught me not to trust the ocean.

Sorry for the rambling but yeah, the boat ride back to Zambales was quite fun because we got to see the lovely islands. Said ride was a little traumatic, too, hence, no boat rides for me for the next three months. Hah. Bitch, please.

Lesson 10: Getaways are always, ALWAYS about the company...

No matter where, no matter what

I feel as though I have enjoyed this trip more than I should. Given all that transpired within that span of time, others would have easily said it was a good-for-nothing vacation but not me.

I dunno, I actually look forward to more road trips with my fellow tributes. It's awesome to have people with whom you can have fun no matter what.

And one thing about not getting everything you expected to get, it teaches you a lesson - a lesson you might have not learned otherwise.

Seriously, when you go through a situation like that, you learn a lot about yourself.

A trip-gone-wrong is actually a test of character, so to speak. It's a test of temper and a challenge to one's optimism. I'm glad I was able to use both my sanity and optimism right there. And please, bitch, a trip-gone-wrong is a like a real-life Fear Factor (see: me, battling a gigantic chicken in Zambales).

Being a cast away in an island with the rain on zero-visibility mode is a situation that can drive you mad but with good company, cool drinks, awesome food, and everything to talk about... a vacation like that is always a blast.

On a side note:

I actually learned that blasting boyband music while on a smooth car ride back to the city is an awesome thing to do. I made a mental note to make a playlist next time we hit the road.

Aaaaand! I also learned that Aegis music is a cool company as well. *Shrugs* Who would've thought?

Pain is a relative term 12:21 AM

Pain is a relative term.

One that is somehow connected to a past or a future; and sometimes the present. Most of the time, pain is a side effect of an event, of words spoken (or even unspoken), or a tiny realization.

Still, pain is a relative term.

One that someone does not quickly recover from. One that can be felt over and over again.

Perhaps, pain is a side effect of happiness, or an aftermath, or simply a feeling when said happiness fleets away.

Still, pain is arelative term.

One that is inevitable. One that can hit you anywhere, anytime.

Your pain is coming from somewhere

Twenty-one years of existence has taught me that people fight a different battle everyday. A battle that makes one feel as if it sucks to be them.

I know.

I have 21 years of existence to know the different varieties of pain. I don't know them all but I may have the slightest idea.

There's the pain that other people bring, or the pain that the voices in your head cause; and there's the kind of pain that comes from fear and the unknown. There's the pain brought by uncertainties.

There's the pain of the great unrequited love and there's the pain of a love that got away. There's the pain of disappointment and there's the pain of broken promises.

I am most familiar to the pain of broken dreams and wishful thinking.

Yet, there's the pain that words cannot explain.

Time will tell

There's the kind of pain that lasts for hours. There's a kind of pain that lasts for days. Some take months to recover, while others just need space and not time.

The bittersweet truth is, there's the kind of pain that never goes away - and it's the kind of pain that is hardest to recover from; the kind of pain that scars for a lifetime, the kind of pain that you learn to live with.

The only way out is through

Some people are good with dealing pain, while others just suck royally.

Some people know when to feel, some others tend to not feel at all; and while some choose to cry at night, others decide to stop living.

But the best way to deal with pain, is to face the bitch. Not run from it or punch it right back, just face it.

Just feel it.

It's true that pain is inevitable and it's true that suffering is optional but being given a choice not to feel pain doesn't mean you have to choose not to feel. That's why it's a choice, you can choose.

Feeling the pain is not torture, it's the right thing to do because as they say it - pain is a bitch and bitches will always come around unless you get rid of them.

And someday, whatever pain you're in right now, it will make sense.

For now, don't you dare think life is bad. This might be a bad week or a horrible year but it it is never a bad life.

When someday comes around, you'll see.

You'll see.

People are unhappy... 7:05 AM

We all have an image in our heads that becomes our ideal place of happiness. We all have that one idea of happiness but then, for most people, when they make those images come true, it is not what they expect it to be.

Often times, the images in our head screws up the real thing in front of us. Often times, the things we ignore are the ones that truly makes us happy.

Often times, the thing we have been looking for to be happy is not the thing that we're truly searching for.

And I guess it's true, people are unhappy because they are looking in the wrong places to be happy.

Making A Comeback? It's Easy. 8:49 AM

Don't be afraid to rise again.

When you lose your way or if you hit rock bottom, you can always find your back.

MaSha is definitely back 8:44 AM

For what it's worth, Maria Sharapova introduced me to sports.

A series of injuries somehow made this blog entry almost impossible but as they say it, never underestimate the power of a true champion.

Maria Sharapova strut her way to her first ever French Open Final, defeating previous champions and record holders -  a climb that resulted to reclaiming the top spot in the WTA Rankings. Yes, Maria Sharapova is your current World No. 1.

But the journey didn't end in getting to the finals - the story capped off with a title.

Maria Sharapova defeated Italy's Sara Errani to be the 10th woman in tennis history to complete a career Grand Slam and for those who are not aware. It is a big deal.

Of course, I'd dedicate another blog entry to her. She's like, my sports idol - the one that started my love for sports.

Congratulations, MaSha!

x

'Rock of Ages' Sountrack: 4 of 5 Stars 2:25 AM

Never had I imagined that I'll be saying this - Tom Cruise in a movie sountrack, along with Mary J. Blige and Diego Boneta, sounded GLEEfully incredible.

Okay, with an ensemble that included Tom Cruise and Julianne Hough, I admit, the soundtrack is nowhere near the R.E.N.T. soundtrack vocally, but still the Rock of Ages soundtrack is something worth listening to - except if you don't fancy remakes.

[I don't understand people who don't fancy remake anyways. I mean, I love Queen but I always like to hear people remaking their songs, I download them, too. That was wholly unnecessary but, whatever.]

A lot of the songs - especially the mash-offs - sounded a lot like a rip-off from Glee [believe me, I watch the show all the time]. The fact that it sounded a lot like Glee is a positive this time. [I mean, ignore Glee's awful cover of the Bee Gees' How Deep is Your Love or its insufferable remake of James Brown's It's A Man's Man's World... Sorry, Dianna Agron.]

As you listen to the sountrack, note that the Executive Music Producer of this movie is the almost legendary Adam Anders - the man behind the glory days of Glee when they had one of their biggest sales weeks to date with 986,000 downloads of tracks (tracks produced by Anders himself). He's also among the people behind the success of various Disney flicks; see: High School Musical 3, Camp Rock, and Hannah Montana: The Movie (things we don't all need to understand why it succeeded in the first place but that's beside the point; I was just trying to give you a picture).

Adam Anders

Moving on, Rock of Ages is a movie adaptation of a classic Broadway musical - of the same name - whose story revolves around Sherrie Christian (played by Julianne Hough, good pick BTW) and Drew Boley (played by Diego Boneta; it's actually Drew Dilinbeck in the original play). Two characters fall in love during the rock and glam metal era of the 80s. That's why you have Tom Cruise's character Stacey Jaxx who is Drew's music idol.

That's basically it but man, a musical set in the 1980s is a rare occurence now.

The sountrack features 20 songs, all of which are songs that were big in the 1980s [and all of which are songs I surprisingly know; I was born on the first year of the 90s, mind you].

”Paradise City”, Tom Cruise

“Sister Christian” / “Just Like Paradise” / “Nothin’ But A Good Time” - Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Russell Brand, Alec Baldwin

“Juke Box Hero” / “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” - Diego Boneta, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Julianne Hough

“Hit Me With Your Best Shot” - Catherine Zeta-Jones

“Waiting For A Girl Like You” - Diego Boneta, Julianne Hough

“More Than Words” / “Heaven" - Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta

“Wanted Dead Or Alive" - Tom Cruise, Julianne Hough

“I Want To Know What Love Is” - Tom Cruise, Malin Akerman

“I Wanna Rock” - Diego Boneta

“Pour Some Sugar On Me” - Tom Cruise

“Harden My Heart” - Julianne Hough, Mary J. Blige

“Shadows of the Night” / “Harden My Heart” - Mary J. Blige, Julianne Hough

“Here I Go Again” - Diego Boneta, Paul Giamatti, Julianne Hough, Mary J. Blige, Tom Cruise

“Can’t Fight This Feeling” - Russell Brand, Alec Baldwin

“Any Way You Want It” – Mary J. Blige, Constantine Maroulis, Julianne Hough

“Undercover Love” – Diego Boneta

“Every Rose Has Its Thorn” – Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Tom Cruise, Mary J. Blige

“Rock You Like A Hurricane” – Julianne Hough, Tom Cruise

“We Built This City” / “We’re Not Gonna Take It” – Russell Brand / Catherine Zeta-Jones

“Don’t Stop Believin’” - Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Mary J. Blige

Catherine Zeta-Jones' Hit Me With Your Best Shot is actually nice, no major changes in the arrangement but it's pretty decent. Pat Benatar would be proud. Zeta-Jones and Russell Brand's mash-off of We Build This City and We're Not Gonna Take It is also nice, I mean, it practically sounded like a New Directions mash-off (see: Glee) but it's nice nonetheless. It easily found its may to my iPod [yes, I have musical in my iPod].

Cruise's Paradise City is... well, fun - for lack of better word. It's nothing compared to the Guns N' Roses original but I'd listen to it. It's mostly because of the Tom-Cruise-singing-a-Guns-N'-Roses-song factor.

Mary J. Blige, Constantine Maroulis, and Julianne Hough's version of Any Way You Want It is one of my favorites. I mean, Mary J. Blige singing a Journey classic isn't something I'd pass up on.

But Cruise's Pour Some Sugar On Me is just... God, help me but Tom Cruise pulling off a Def Leppard is definitely NOT mission impossible. [I can't stop listening to it, I raped the replay button.]

The other songs are also nice, it's a good album overall but the my personal favorites would be the remake of Whitesnake's Here I Go Again. I mean, I never liked the song before but I appreaciate it now (the power of musicals). And definitely, a new Adam Anders arrangement of Journey's Don't Stop Believing? Definitely a must-hear. I don't know how he managed to not make it sound so much like Glee but it turned out to be okay.

Rating:

　

Okay, so Tom Cruise is no Chris Hardwick of the original Broadway cast (because I've watched clips) or Julianne Hough is especially nowhere near Laura Bell Bundy but the Rock of Ages soundtrack is definitely a go. I approve.

Watch the Rock of Ages Trailer Here:

Rainy Season Mixtape: It's Time For Some "Rain" Songs 3:17 AM

Now that summer's officially over, we're down to jackets and blankets.

We are over the sweaty days and so we now resort to hot drinks when we feel cold at night, or even settle for wearing socks when the air conditioning system got a little too cold for our liking. Our time by the beach is over and it's time for us to stare at our indoor surroundings.

In a tropical country like the Philippines, the rainy season is very much appreciated especially after grueling months of summer heat. Of course, there are those inevitable flood incidents and slippery roads; there are also those tragic accidents - but more or less, the rainy season is a time where most of us reflect about our lives.

Whether you're on the road, looking outside the car or train; or you're at home just gazing outside your already moist window. Or you're just probably feeling a little too sentimental to match the weather -- it's always okay to be equipped with music that matches the weather.

So here's a mixtape I prepared for future references.

Again, forgive my 80s antics. (I can't help it!)

The White Stripes, "In The Cold, Cold Night"
Madonna, "Frozen"
Red Hot Chili Peppers, "Snow"
The Decemberists, "January Hymn"
Queen, "A Winter's Tale"
Bruce Springsteen, "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out"
Mammas & Pappas, "California Dreamin'"
Radiohead, "Morning Bell"
The Rolling Stones, "Winter"
Sarah McLachlan, "Song for a Winter's Night"
Owl City, "The Tip of the Iceberg"
Motion City SoundTrack, "Hold Me Down"

Create a playlist at MixPod.com

My personal favorites are Motion City SoundTrack's "Hold Me Down" and Sarah McLachlan's "Song For A Winter's Night". And of course, The White Stripes' "In A Cold, Cold Night".

You Will Shine 1:59 AM

Some dreams take time to come true.

Some dreams happen so fast that you just don't notice it.

Some dreamers opt to wait; while others tend to give up.

Having a dream - a dream to shine - is a purpose we serve in life; having something to hold on to is a reason why we keep getting up in the morning.

It doesn't happen in an instant, but it does happen.

Someday.

You. Will. Shine.

The Magic Room Project 9:20 AM

Today, I started The Magic Room Project.

The Magic Room Project is a collection of all random, yet inspirational and interesting things, quotes, books, and other things that might trigger our imagination or save us from a current situation. These things are stuff that I might have seen or heard randomly or some things that I am able to recall from the past.

Why put up such project?

My life was changed by a photo I saw on You, Me & Charlie. I took it as a sign and since following the bliss that said random photo gave me, my life has never been the same.

This is the photo that I was talking about.

I decided to start this project because it might change lives, the way it changed mine.

how to be happy when your heart is breaking 8:05 AM

So, I just read this blog post on one of the links I consistently follow. Just thought I'd share this with you; I know it would be big help to some people I know.

Watchin' the time go, the second hand is movin' too fast
Whoever thought that it ever really would last
And if your conscience weighs a little heavy tonight
Maybe you'll find it, maybe you'll find...
Nobody told you that nothing plays out like it seems
Twenty years now, runnin' scared of all your dreams
Is it everything you thought it would be?

When you come back, I'll be alright
On your own again, back where it all began
The phone don't ring, and the tears they fall
But you carry on and on and on and on

Past is past; you never really gave it a shot
To survive with your one last shot in the dark
And if your conscience weighs a little heavy tonight
Maybe you'll find...
Empty boxes on the stairs
Remind you that there's no one there
Is it everything you thought it would be?
You'll see...

When you come back, I'll be alright
On your own again, back where it all began
The phone don't ring, and the tears they fall
But you carry on and on and on and on 

You gotta go, you never knowjust how it'll all turn out
Forget what's done, the western sun
leaves no doubt

When you come back, I'll be alright
On your own again, back where it all began
The phone don't ring, and the tears they fall
But you carry on and on and on and on

"On Your Own"Green River Ordinance

Though I'm not suffering from a broken heart right now, I've been there. Man, have I been there. Many, many times. More times than I'd like to admit I've been broken hearted by breaking someone else's heart. It always seems as if it'd be better to be the one ending things, but it's not. It still hurts. Like hell. But you didn't come by to hear all about the heartaches of Dani, did you? Nope, you came by some for a Dani-sized dash of positivity and that's what I'm gonna give you. What's spurred me to write about heartache when my own heart's not aching? Lately I've been receiving a lot of questions about how to be happy even when your heart is breaking from my readers, and, though I must admit that in the past I haven't been the best at dealing with my personal pain, I think I have a new outlook on how one might deal with a broken heart and I want to share my advice with you (and store it for myself for later should I ever be faced with a broken heart myself!).

So, those of you suffering from a broken heart (or anyone who has suffered from one) knows that it's probably one of the worst feelings in the world. When you're down in the depths of heartache it feels like nothing in the world will bring you out of your pain. It feels like nothing you do, nothing anyone else says, can make you feel better. I know that feel. It flat out sucks. I'm not going pretend I have a cure all for getting rid of that terrible feeling in the pit of your stomach. I'm not going to sit here and claim I have a solution that will make all of your sadness go away. But here's the deal. You have a choice. You can either continue to be miserable (which, let's face it, isn't exactly bringing him or her back to you, is it?) or you can pull yourself together and move on. So what's it gonna be? It's totally up to you. Believe me, I know first hand that you can wallow in that self-pity for as long as you please. Days, weeks, months can go by before you even realize that you're wasting your life away, completely consumed by your sadness. Is that what you really want? To be sad? To be feeling sorry for yourself? I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure most of us want to be happy. It's not at all easy to be happy when it feels like your heart has been splintered into a million little pieces, but it's up to you. Cheesy as it might sound, you can be anything you want to be. You want to be sad? Be sad. But if you want to be happy, read on...

How To Be Happy When Your Heart Feels Like Someone Smashed It With A Hammer

Accept the fact that you feel terrible, alone, and worthless. Yes, you feel like your heart and mind have been beaten. You feel defeated. You feel alone. You feel, for brief moments, like just throwing in the towel and giving up. It's okay to feel bad. You're supposed to. It's normal. One of the most important things I've learned in my path to positivity is that you can't just brush the bad emotions aside. Sure, it would be fabulous if we could be oh-so-happy all the time, but that's not life. Life sucks sometimes. Really sucks. We get mad, we get sad, we get hurt. That's just how it is. I used to try to avoid any of the bad feelings. I used to just drink or distract myself with other unhealthy pastimes, but that only caused the feelings to hide out in the back of my mind, building up on one another until they became this big, horrible mess of sadness and anger. It was not good. You don't want that to happen to you so deal with your pain and sadness. You're experiencing a loss and that hurts. It's okay for it to hurt. Sit with your sadness for a bit and allow yourself to feel how you feel.

Drag yourself out of that puddle of self pity. Okay, it's one thing to let yourself experience your emotions, but enough with the cartons of ice cream, the bags of chips, and the endless reruns of Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Pull yourself together. It is, no matter what you feel like, completely unacceptable to sit around in your PJs for days, doing nothing but crying and watching Lifetime movies. It might sound harsh, but you have to get a grip. It feels awful, yes, but life goes on. It has to. You won't spend the rest of your life wallowing (even though right now it feels like you might) so you might as well get a jump start on your new, exciting, single life right now. Get up. Get dressed. Get going. Do something -- anything -- other than sitting around feeling sorry for yourself. Sadness in small doses is fine. Sadness is large quantities is just selfish. Get out there and do something productive, happy, and fun. Think about it like this: This is your life. Right now. What if today were your last day? Would you want to spend in wallowing in sadness? I think not!

Gather up your best friends and do something fabulous. Whenever you're going through a rough time, one of the best things you can do is surround yourself with the people who love you (and, yes, this is different from the people youlove). Surround yourself with positive, happy, loving people and you'll instantly start to feel better. Think about something you really love to do (maybe something that your ex didn't ever want to do) and do it. Take your friends and get going on a fabulous adventure, even if that adventure is just a night of dining out. (Remember: Anything can be an adventure if you make it into one!) The key to going out and doing something fun with friends is not to think about and dwell on your sadness. Yes, you might want to bring it up, but don't. You probably discussed it plenty when it first happened, so leave it behind for your fabulous adventure of fun. Your wonderful friends are making an effort to spend time with you -- they love you! -- so don't bring everyone down by being a huge downer. Distract yourself. Ask them about their lives (and don't you dare make a face when they bring up their wonderful significant others!). Engage people (maybe even strangers!) in a random conversation about an interesting topic. Don't go out and sit in a corner and mope. Go out and have fun!

Remember who you are and embrace that person. You are you. No matter how close you were with your ex, you are not a product of the relationship you were in. You were you before you met that person and you are still you now. And, you know what? You're pretty awesome. No one else can be you. No one will ever be. And that's pretty cool, right? So let's think about you. What are you? Who are you? What do you like to do? What are your favorite songs? Favorite activities? Favorite movies? Think about these things (write them down if you want) and remember that no one -- no matter how bad they might make you feel in a moment of heartache -- can take you away from you. No matter what happens in life, you always have yourself so you better work on loving that person and celebrating how awesome he or she is. If you really love yourself, really believe that you are great, no one can take that away from you. People will hurt you, yes, but that's okay. It's okay to be hurt and to feel shitty, but it's not okay to let those feelings take away from your self worth. You are an awesome person -- we all are -- and you deserve to be happy. Since you can't be happy with someone else right now, you better be happy with yourself. Take this heartache and see it as a reminder to celebrate all of the great things about you -- the you that is just you, not the you that is half of a pair.

Learn from the heartbreak and let it go. Every heartbreak hurts. It really does. Even when you go out with your friends and tell yourself you're great and do all of the things you loved to do before you met that other person, you're probably going to still feel pretty bad at times. Let yourself feel bad (but not for too long!) and think about how you can learn from the pain you're feeling. I really do believe that there's a lesson in everything and every painful experience I've gone through has proved that to me. Even when I've felt like giving up, like just screaming until my lungs collapsed, I was learning. Even though it didn't feel like it at the time, I was becoming stronger and better and learning more about myself and the world. I've always had a hard time letting the pain and sadness go. As I've mentioned to you before, I identified myself with being the downer, with being sad and sarcastic. It's hard for me to look at my pain from a distance and say, "Oh, you again. Go away!" I'm much more tempted to say, "Oh, hello old friend! Please come in!" But it does no good to hang on to pain and sadness. It's okay to experience it, to learn from it, but it doesn't do anyone (especially you!) any good to hang on to it. It's not a raft. It's an anchor. And it will drag you straight to the bottom of the ocean of self pity if you cling to it. My advice? Accept it. Learn from it. Let it go.

And that's pretty much what I'd say to sum up this post: Accept it. Learn from it. Let it go. It doesn't work to pretend it's not happening and it doesn't really help you in the long run if you don't try to learn from it and it certainly doesn't do any good to cling to your heartache like a drowning, desperate crazy person. Not only are sadness, desperation, and anger unattractive qualities (should you ever feel like dating again), but they are pretty damaging to any attempts you're making to live a positive life. As I said before, I'm pretty sure we all want to be happy. It's a pretty basic, human desire. And, as you know, I do believe that happiness is a choice. When you're battling a broken heart, choosing happiness is far from easy, but it is still possible. Remember that it's up to you. No one else is going to make you feel better. No one else is going to truly be able to pull yourself out of your sadness. It's up to you. Choose to accept it, learn from it, and let it go. Choose to be happy.

Source: Positively Present