Today is my 20th birthday. And I wanted to take this time to tell everyone thank you.
No, not for the tons of happy birthday messages. But for the tons of heartfelt messages I've received over the past few weeks.
To state the obvious, these past couple of weeks have been hard. They've been hard on me, on my mom, my family, and I'm sure that they've been hard on John too. When I decided to share the whole story, I was not expecting so many people to respond to it, especially in the way that they did. I thought people would hear the story and pity me thinking "that poor girl, she is so stupid for ending up in that situation". I thought people who knew John would have an awful opinion of him, knowing how much he lied to everyone. The list goes on of what my imagination thought.
But I was wrong. I received nothing but support and prayers. And through my willingness to open up and share, God started working in incredible ways.
So today, I want to say thank you.
To my mom for being there for me to lean on. For sleeping with me the first few nights because I didn't want to be alone. For being able to cry together. For not telling me "I told you so" which she had every right to do. I love you!
Thank you to my family for sticking by me and for your prayers. You've been there to offer advice, to invite me to hang out and do things to keep my mind off of the bad things, and to hug me when I needed it the most.
To my best friends, Amy and Emmy. For being there every time even though our relationships have slacked off recently. For making me laugh and just having someone to talk to when I felt lonely. For being there to hear me be sad and to hear me burst at the seams with joy during other times.
To my church family for checking in on me. For sharing their hearts with me. For encouraging me. And for praying with me and for me. I am so thankful for a church that is like family.
To my coworkers for putting up with me calling out of work. For listening to all my drama. For making me laugh in a way only they can. And for never telling me to shut up cause all they hear about is John. I love my team.
To my TeenPact friends. The ones who are my best friends, the ones I've talked to a few times, and the ones I've technically never even met. Your heartfelt words touched me. And I was so comforted by all of you taking time to share your thoughts, encouragement, and your own stories of hard times. You have told me you were praying for things that I didn't even think of. And you've encouraged me by sharing how my story is encouraging you. I can always count on my TeenPacters! Allison Kelly Peanut Butter and Jelly loves you all. :)
To the Heejunies (fans of Heejun) who only know me through my mom and her many tweets to Heejun. You've been praying and sharing Bible verses and words of encouragement to someone you don't even know and that is incredible. I hope to be able to meet you someday and if not, we will meet in heaven someday. That is so awesome.
To everyone we met on our missions trip to Holland, thank you for your prayers. It is so incredible to know there are people literally across the world keeping us in prayer and thinking of us. You are all so sweet and I am so glad God allowed us to meet. Ik ben zo dankbaar voor u! Heel hartelijk bedankt. :)
To my family, best friends, my church, coworkers, TeenPacters, heejunies, family friends, old friends, acquaintances, and friends and family of people we know, and anyone else I may have forgotten:
Your prayers have been felt. I am so grateful for each and every one of you. I am definitely blessed.
I can't wait to see what the Lord does in this situation. And I can't wait for you all to see it too.
Thank you.
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