I love love.

I love love. I always have, since I was a little girl.

I remember watching Beauty and the Beast over and over again.

Bell was my favorite. I still have the golden dress I wore for Halloween when I was like 7.

I remember other little girls in my class asking me why Bell and not Cinderella. Apparently Cinderella was the perfect love story and every little girl was supposed to aspire to have that.

To be honest, I never liked Cinderella. At least not until Brandy played her in the 90's and Hillary Duff in the 2000's.

I always thought Bell was special. I found it so interesting that out of all of the Disney princesses, she didn't need saving. She was whole from the very beginning. And love kinda just found her. It was hard and imperfect... but still good.

Now when I think of love. I have mixed emotions. I'm totally a believer. Trust me. I'm just on a different kind of journey. A journey that requires me to love on my own heart and soul first.

Now I know this may not be what you were expecting. But I want to be honest with you and I want you to understand where I'm coming from.

I've seen love do a lot of things. I've seen it at its worst and at its best.

I've seen it devastate hearts. But I've also seen it handcraft and mend souls like the glitter dusted magic we read about in fairytales.

I've seen people lose themselves in it. But I've also seen it encourage people to be everything the enemy said they wouldn't be and then some.

I don't know everything. I'll admit that I'm still learning. What I will say is that I believe that we are all worthy of it in the best way. We deserve a love that will set our souls on fire while still keeping our hearts calm at the same time.

We deserve careful hands and good intentions.

I think love is truly a gift. And while I'm not sure I'm ready for it, I am more than convinced that a special kind exists just for me.

But for right now, my heart is set on a special kind of journey and that's to love myself.

You see, I truly believe that we are always exactly where we are meant to be at that moment in time. To be completely honest with you, it took me a minute to get to this point.

I have always been the girl who knows exactly what she wants. What job I'd have, what city I'd move to, what my dating life would be like. I've always been....well....sure.

But I'm happy to share that I'm not sure I feel that way anymore. I still know what I want out of life, that will probably never change. However, I don't have a concrete plan that doesn't allow for change.

Because change is good.

Change has made me a better woman. And without it, my heart would still be where I was 2 years ago. (Hells naw)

I've realized that it's okay to not always know what comes next.

Stressing out about the future does nothing for you in the present.

I say all of this to say that like many things in life, love should be taken one step at a time. Yes this includes loving other people, but I'm more interested in the way you love yourself. I'm more concerned with you loving every ounce of your being.

Take it a step at a time. You're worth it.

Stay strong!