Finding the Good in Unlikely Places

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What does it mean to be good? That is something I thought about recently, when Cents of Style asked me to feature their Be the Good “Fashion Story Friday”. I thought long and hard about it and decided to do the unthinkable… Go back to my middle school.

I decided that my middle school was the perfect place to take photos for this shirt because middle school was honestly where I learned the most about being good. It wasn’t because middle school was the best two years of my life though. It was because I experienced some of my lowest of lows while standing in this very building.

When I think about how I learned to “Be the Good”, I can’t help but think of this quote from Albus Dumbledore (Harry Potter)… “Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.” I experienced some of my hardest trials of my childhood during my middle school years and still struggle with insecurities due to being severely bullied during that time, but I wouldn’t know to look for the light, or how to be the light, if it wasn’t for the darkness.

There was one specific time that I can remember that I saw light in the darkness. I was in 6th grade and my friend’s mom was a substitute teacher in my class that day. She had probably overheard some of the things that my peers were saying to me that day. When I had gone up to ask her a question about an assignment, I remember her saying something like “You know? You don’t need to care about those kids. You don’t want to be like them. You’re so much better than they are.” I wish that I could say that it was at that exact moment that I decided not to care what other people thought or said about me, but it wasn’t. I still cared (and probably still care a little too much) about what those kids thought about me, but what that moment did do for me was help me realize that I really DIDN’T have to be like them.

Was I perfect at being kind to people from then on? Absolutely not. I know I haven’t always been kind, but I also know that I learned from the darkness and I made it a point to never be a bully. It took me a while to gain the confidence to really let my inner light shine, but I feel like I really tried to show others kindness by the time I got to high school. I had such an eclectic group of friends. I was friends with several “groups”, but the kids I was with the most was kind of a random assortment of us. I kind of feel like we were all from different “groups” and just kind of found each other. They were non judgmental, they were quirky, they were hilarious, and they were good.

Now that I am a mother, I can’t think of anything that I would want to teach my children more than to “Be the Good” in each situation they are faced with. Maybe they will have to go through the trials of bullying or maybe they will be faced with other trials, but I hope that they can look for the good and be the good each and every day.

How do you choose to be the good in the world?

These incredible “Be the Good” tees from Cents of Style are on a crazy deal all weekend! All of the Cents of Style Be The Good items are 40% off, when you use the code BEGOOD17 at checkout. This makes bags under $9, the hat and bracelets under $15, and necklace and tees under $17. Cents of Style always has free shipping, too! Snag up some of these goodies this weekend and DO NOT forget to be the good in the world. You just never know who’s life you might turn around by showing them kindness.

Side note, because I know it will be asked:

These jeans are the BEST ever! They are the nicest pair of jeans I have ever own and the quality is out of control, amazing. The stretch is SO good. They are on sale as part of the Nordstrom sale, as well! The rise is high enough that you can bend over and take care of kids, without showing your goods, but low enough that you aren’t wearing “mom jeans”. I want at least 3 more pairs!

My earrings are from Charming Charlie. They are incredibly light weight and don’t hurt my ears which is a major bonus.

I got my shoes on a deal on Jane, but they aren’t available on there right now. I did find them in black on Amazon for the same price I paid for mine, though!