It is the quiet nights alone with the musings of Ella Fitzegerald, Nat King Cole, and the likes in which I find myself at peace and content with my creativity. It is nights like tonight that remind me just why I love words and prose so dearly. I find that more times than not, it is easier to sit in front of a television mindlessly watching, barely paying attention to anything other than the colors and the sound, or to lose hours on one single website flipping through images that do little to stimulate my mind. But nights like tonight, I love just soaking up the soft music, sitting back, and allowing my thoughts to fill a page.

       A person can only make so many compromises. When one begins to compromise their morals they are not only doing an injustice to themselves, they are allowing a bit of them to slip away bit by precious bit. Compromise itself is an altogether fantastic concept to have a grasp of, a concept that will help in propelling you further and further in the right direction, and this remains true as long as it is done with the right intent.
     If there is one life lesson that I have learned to any extent worth dwelling on as of late, it is that when you compromise your morals you only hurt yourself. It is vitally important to always preserve your true self. There are times when it seems so right to just bend a few beliefs here, or go against your better judgement from time to time, but in doing so you are losing yourself, and not only are you losing yourself you aren't being true to those around you. If you can't be true to those that you hold close, how can you ever expect to be true to yourself? Understanding you self worth and maintaining the ability to hold yourself to as high esteem as those close to you is so much easier said than done, but just think about how good you would feel about if you saw yourself with the same eyes that see those you love; you love them, adore them, expect good things of them and above all, you value their relationships.
     It is so easy to forget about yourself and your own needs while trying to pamper those relationships that you hold so dear. It is so easy to get caught up in the nurturing of those you feel need it. It is so hard to take an objective step back and realize that you are giving all you have to give to others and leaving nothing for yourself.
     I am not a psychologist, I have no degree to back up my ramblings, but I do speak from life experience. I have made this exact mistake many times over, and I always come out feeling tired and weary. Being true to your own moral standings and remaining firm about them will only make you happier and more fulfilled in the long run. The people that you surround yourself with and choose to hold close don't want another mother to nurture them as such, or someone who's beliefs bend and sway like a branch in the wind, they want you, and they want you at your best! And frankly if that is not the case then they do not deserve you at your best!