All American Senior Year: Volume One

Liv the Truth: Choosing to Be Happy

"Welcome back to Liv the Truth, I'm your host, Olivia Baker. This week the podcast is going to be a little different. I kind of wanted to share with you guys what's been happening in my life. I don't know if it'll be much motivation but maybe you can learn from me and apply it to yours" Olivia said taking a deep breath holding onto her necklace.

"If you can't tell through my voice and the way that I'm talking today. I'm smiling. Which is a weird phenomenon for me these days. But I think after a really long time I'm on the road to being happy. If your thinking why am I smiling if I'm not fully happy? Well, it's been a while since I've been here and after the week I had I have to celebrate the small victories. But on the road to being happy doesn't mean I'm unhappy. It just means that there are steps to take to get me to be fully happy. This week I've taken a few steps in the right direction. I still have a long way to go. After the dust settles and I find a new routine in this new road I've chosen, then I could come back and give you guys an update. But as of right now, I'm on the road to being happy".

"I guess since we are on the subject I should tell you about my week and why I haven't stopped smiling in the past day. I swear my cheeks hurt, and my mind is in a whirlwind of emotions these days. I've never felt like being on cloud nine but after last night I could see what people are talking about. You know those really good dreams you don't want to wake up from? The dreams that you have to pinch yourself because you don't really know if you're dreaming or if it's real? That's how I would describe how I feel right now. I'm constantly in a state of a really great dream. And if I am dreaming, please don't wake me. I would like to enjoy this dream for as long as I could before being wakened up back to reality".

"My week started out quite the opposite actually. It was a rough couple of days, actually weeks to be honest. These past few weeks a lot of truths came out, in more ways than one. Just like the saying goes "truth hurts". It's never easy to hear it, especially if the truth is something you never wanted to hear. But If you're not honest with others, how can you be honest with yourself? "Time heals most wounds" or so they say. And I'm hoping that stays true, that with time all the wounds that have been opened in the past couple of weeks. Will turn into scars we can all learn and grow from".  

"This week was especially hard since I had to be honest with someone I was close to. The both of us have been through a lot. But since being with this person it has always felt as if we were always in the midst of a terrible storm or about to be in one. It got to the point where their happiness came before mine. I felt guilty for wanting something I couldn't have, more so because I knew it would hurt this person. I hoped if I would spare my feelings everything would stay the same, but somehow the truth always comes out. Leading me to come face to face. We threw salt in already opened wounds, and in the heat of the moment, we said things that needed to be said, but it didn't hurt any less. I felt as if I'd been walked over and my feelings weren't valid in the end. Leaving us to go our separate ways".

"That doesn't mean we were both in the wrong. Because I should've been honest with her too. I have just as much to blame as she does. But I knew after everything was said and done, it wasn't only a matter of time, It was just a matter of when? After confronting this person it gave me the clarity I needed to fight for what I wanted. To put my happiness first. Something I haven't done in a long time". 

"Kind of owe a special thank you to a guy I really never thought had it in him. I guess the last couple of months really had changed him. Gave him a clearer perspective in order to help his little sister out. To my brother Jordan, I guess really this whole podcast is dedicated to you. Without our talk, I would've never had the courage to fight for what I wanted. You told me that life is too short to live a life to make others happy. Your words resonated with me, and somehow gave me the push I needed. So thank you". 

"I guess all I could say is that I'm on the road to being happy. For the first time in a long time, I'm choosing to be happy. I'm not going to run away out of fear of what's going to happen. Because to be honest we have no clue. We can't live a life scared to lose the ones we love because life is fragile. We can be fine today and gone tomorrow. All I'm trying to say is don't let anyone get in the way of what makes you happy. Don't let others get the best of you and affect your happiness. And when they do, then it's time for you to decide what is best, their happiness or yours? I lost myself in thinking of others, but as I'm finding myself again. I'm finding that it's worth putting yourself first. It's worth trying to better yourself because it sure does feel good. Your happiness matters, and don't be afraid to go after what you want. Because I'm telling you, it's so worth it in the end. Until next time, this is Olivia Baker's Liv the Truth".