20 THINGS I'VE LEARNED IN 2014

So 2014 is nearly over and as a personal tradition, I usually fill in my jar of happiness with things that made my year a kick-ass one. But as most of you probably know, I’ve gone through rough times this year so instead, I filled my HAPPINESS JAR with lessons that I will perpetually be grateful for.
Here are the things that I’ve learned this year:
1. When getting into a relationship, you should always trust your gut. There were so many red flags that I failed to acknowledge. Be cognisant of those little things that could potentially turn into a series of “WTF moments."
2. When someone is too good to be true, you can bet your ass that they are TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE. My dad used to say that people who are very good at putting their best foot forward are either sociopaths and/or extremely insecure. He was right on both counts.
3. It doesn’t matter what the truth is, people will choose to believe their own version of it. What matters is that you know what truly happened and that’s pretty much the only ammunition you need in the pointless battle of ‘he said, she said’. My dad once said, ‘The only people who are more ignorant than slanderers are the ones who are foolish enough to believe them.’ Word, dad.
4. Crazy bitches exist. They are not a myth. There are truly crazy bitches out there. Choose your friends as thoroughly as you choose your lovers. I have been scorned by more women than men. The sisterhood that they all talk about is completely flawed. Some women are jealous, manipulative and crazy and just when you think that they can’t get any crazier, you'd soon find out that they have an underground garage of more crazy. So the next time you meet a potential new friend, BE CAREFUL. Do a background check. If she has a Peruvian accent and brags about her fake butt and constantly talks about it like it’s the Holy Grail, RUN AWAY. If she lies about her job, RUN AWAY. If she bites her nails constantly and talks about her being a rape victim to random strangers in the streets, RUN AWAY. If she gets annoyed because a dude is giving you attention instead of her, RUN AWAY. If she makes you lie to her fiancé about her whereabouts, RUN AWAY. If she obsesses over what other people say about her and nags you everyday why that other person said it, RUN AWAY!!!!
5. Do not share your plans to just about anyone. That’s what your bestriends are there for. Just because someone showed you their good side doesn’t mean you can trust them. Some people don’t have a conscience. They take advantage of you the moment you show your weakness. And that’s why I’m not trusting enough to really open up to anybody I don’t know very well anymore, which is good for my immune system.
6. In a relationship, both people have to compromise. BOTH PEOPLE. That sounds obvious, but so often in a relationship, one person expects the other to change themselves to be what they want. That’s not how it works. Someone told me that relationships are all about RELATING to other people and when it starts to become all about just one person, then there’s really no point in being there anymore.
7. Life happens on its own timetable. You can’t fast forward to the parts you want. So take all the time you need. Time MAY NOT heal all wounds. Some wounds stand the test of time better than any of the remaining wonders of the world. Some wounds are so deep that the only way time can remove them is by removing you along with them. But on the other hand, we sometimes find that TIME IS ENOUGH. Sometimes, time shows us that the feelings we felt were only to be felt in passing - as we passed on by and on to the next individual we love. That’s why you have to give time a chance. Make use of it. Even if it doesn’t do the trick of healing all your wounds, it will most certainly numb the pain. It will turn those vivd memories into blurry renditions.
8. Standing up for myself doesn’t make me a bitch - it makes me a HUMAN BEING WITH A BACKBONE. You should not feel guilty for retaliating. And it’s totally acceptable for you to throw a nuclear bomb after they chucked a grenade at you. That’s the art of war.
9. Revel in your own company. You don’t need to be in a relationship to be happy. The best relationship you can have is the one that you have with yourself. Men are not supposed to COMPLETE you. They should only COMPLEMENT you.
10. You can be the sweetest and juiciest peach of all peaches and you will still come across someone who hates peaches. I have learned this lesson at a very tender age. I’m not out to please everybody anymore - I’ve actually been out to try not to DISPLEASE anybody, and that’s even harder work. So screw that, too. I’m not a big fan of justifying my thoughts to people. I’ve known since high school that my take on things is not for everyone.
11. Just be f*cking honest about how you feel about people, while you’re alive. Do not make excuses for their misdemeanour. If they pissed you off, acknowledge it. You are not responsible for their issues. If they repeatedly hurt you and you still choose to stay, then this is where it stops being their fault. You have now become the perpetrator of the pain and misery that you feel. Own it. You're here because YOU made the decision, not because there was a consensus
12. For all the times we punish ourselves, very few times have we actually done something wrong. Be easy on yourself. You’re only young. Do not beat yourself up for your f*ck ups. If you didn’t make those mistakes then, you could very well make them in the future. Just be grateful for the lesson, learn from it and keep looking forward.
13. The way he treats his mother is pretty much how he will eventually treat you. Classic lesson. If he’s rude to the woman who carried him for 9 months in her womb and gave birth to him, he will definitely be disturbingly rude to you as well. This is a red flag that you cannot and should not ignore. And if his mother who is 65 years old will endeavour to compete with you when it comes to the looks department, then there’s something definitely wrong in the picture. RUN AWAY!!!!!
14. Know your worth. Do not let anyone insure you for less than your market value. Do not let anyone dictate what you are about as a person. You know yourself better than anyone else. You’re the only one who truly knows how you feel, your thoughts, your dreams, fears, and quirks. What other people see is just a semblance of what you choose to share of yourself.
15. Misery loves company. Just because you’re going through shit doesn’t mean you should surround yourself with equally miserable individuals. Surround yourself with positive people. My dad said, 'If you’re in a roomful of people and you find that you stopped learning from them, then you’re in the wrong room.’ True that! The company you keep can make or break your personal growth.
16. "I kept on complaining that I have no shoes until I met a man with no feet.” Your problems are never as big as you make them out to be and someone is always worse off than you. Stop playing the victim. There is always a solution. There’s no such thing as being trapped between the devil and the deep blue sea. There is always that silver lining. Milk it and use it to your advantage. Be aggressive in life. Keep reaching for the universe. Have a Plan B. Or a Plan C. Or a Plan D. Whatever you need to keep going. The only person who is capable of breaking you is YOU.
17. Be open to falling in love again but don’t wear your heart on your sleeve. Don’t try to fall in love with the entire person immediately. Allow yourself to fall in love in the shallowest of senses. Fall in love with bits and pieces. Allow your mind to wander and your imagination to draw conclusions that almost certainly don’t exist. Enjoy getting to know that person. Take as much time as you need because oftentimes, your heart will need a little bit more time to accept what your mind already knows.
18. Saying ‘It’s not meant to be’ is a pathetic way to drown out the pain and the guilt. Relationships fail because someone messed up. You didn’t get that job because you didn’t prepare for the interview. You didn’t pass the exam because you didn’t study hard enough. Saying ‘it’s not meant to be’ is just an excuse to justify failure.
19. Though our brain controls the actions, it’s our heart that gets the biggest workout. So listen to that inner voice more often. It will save you the heartache and the drama.
20. Getting involved in their petty childish games will only give them more ammunition against you. The best and most effective way to shut people down from your past is to keep them in your past. Live your life in the most awesome way possible and don’t look back. And be thankful for them - every single one of them. They made you who you are now. And even though the new year may not promise to be a better year for you, you know that you are a better and stronger person this time around. And that whatever this new year brings, nothing, and I mean ABSOLUTELY NOTHING will break you.