A strong woman is not a body full of steel. She is full of washed down tears, settled dust, a bruised heart, and cells that still ache from time to time. She has spent years with a heavy weight on her shoulders. She has spent years with tears that slide down her red cheeks with no one there to catch them.
But make no mistake, she is anything but weak. Because she still goes about her days lifting all of that weight.
She lets her tears fall on the ground, watering the flowers as she goes.
She doesn’t play the victim. She doesn’t bend with the sadness that likes to surround her heart. She stands tall. Despite the weight, and despite the grief. She stands tall.
A strong woman doesn’t let grief keep her down for long. But, the strongest women are the ones who call for help when they know they need it. They never hide behind their curtains to hide the sun from their eyes. They don’t fake their way to the top. They call for help when they are hurting. Because they know they can’t do everything on their own even if they want to. They know that sometimes, it’s ok to not be ok.
Strong women are allowed to break down. They are allowed to fall from the big bags of sadness they carry with their shoulders. They stumble. They cry out. They sink to the ground. Because they know, that they are allowed to do it. They know that they can’t carry so much at one time. And that sometimes, they need to let it all go. And they need to take the weight off.
Strong women ask for help. They don’t wait until the last second. They don’t reapply their makeup after crying all night. They let their true self shine, no matter what it looks like. They know that they can’t hide from themselves.
And they know it takes strength to break down. It takes bravery to crumble.
Strong women break down. They suffer. They hurt. But, they always ask for guidance. They always ask for help.
And when their wounds have been bandaged up, and the scab is finally almost gone, they get back up.
They let go of that baggage. And they continue to walk on their journey. To smile through the sadness. To be confident in themselves, and confident that they will get through anything. No matter what. Even through the break downs. They will make it. 
