beauty is in the eye of the beholder

i used to think i was fragile & weak. then i thought about it a little more. i've been through more crap than i would wish upon anyone. but i choose not to express the full extent of what kind of person it has made me, so most people will never really know what i've seen or how many ways people have hurt me. and i used to think having the extreme faith in people that i had was a bad thing. so i tried to stop expecting much, and my natural inclination to have faith in people fell to pieces. but again, i thought about it a little more. everyone needs people to have faith in them, otherwise they get lost in temptation and communication and devastation. i choose instead to have faith in those who have faith in themselves, and those who don't. i choose to be a mirror to reflect a light of positivity.
i don't feel that i am fragile,
i do not feel that i am weak because
i am not yet broken. through the, what seems like endlessly long branched cracks and shattered shards, sharp edges and impossibly tiny missing pieces, i can still have faith in people. i still open myself up to opportunities, happiness, love, experience, humor, people. a weak person could not remain open after the obstacles i've overcome. keyword being overcome. i have suffered, i have. but i do not want, nor do i choose to make others suffer to feel my same pain. i have been let down, but i cannot lower myself to let down those who i have encountered, or will encounter. i am better than that. despite the ugliness, i will continue to see the beauty in myself and those struggling to see it in themselves, as well as those who have found it. at the end of the day, a confident mind will open her eyes to possibilities while holding true to her integrity....a secure heart will allow new people and make way for new experiences...a strong person will see the beauty in others, even when the worst may shine through. i refuse to be fragile, i refuse to be weak, because

it is those
experiences
that give me the
strength and knowledge
i have, but they do not define
who i am.