They said the road would be easy, but they never told me it would feel this long.

They said strength is built in the fire.

But they never mentioned how much it would burn I've stood on the edge of my breaking point.

Shook hands with doubt, dance with defeat, but something in me, something God-given, wouldn't let me quit.

He whispered the storm, a flickering in the dark keep going.

Because falling is part of the climb.

Tears are just proof that your heart is still in it.

And even when the world tells you to stop,

you owe it to yourself to rise.

I need you to hear me today.

And I mean really hear me. Because I know what it feels like to want to quit.

I know what it feels like to put in effort and feel like you're getting nothing in return to

keep showing up for a dream that seems like it ain't showing up for you to pour into people

who don't pour back to do the work and still feel like you're stuck

at the starting line.

But I also know what it feels like to push past that moment.

And that's what we're talking about today.

Persistence.

Resilience.

And why you can't afford to give up, my baby.

And now, you know, let's be real.

When we give up, it feels like the easiest option the weight of disappointment it's heavy and the frustration of watching other people seem to

...