Dear Vernon,

The odds of us crossing paths were slim, but the domino effect of connecting with you was life-changing.

When I tell people I know you, their first question is often, “How?” You played in the NFL while I was still in elementary school. You live in Texas. I have only visited the Lone Star state a few times. Our friendship came out of nowhere. It was 2017, and I was in bed randomly looking at LinkedIn when I saw a post about someone writing a letter to their younger self. I am unsure what made me read the story, but I clicked. The letter was so well-written and powerful. It was about your life story. You were the product of gang rape, and you shared your complicated relationship with your later mother. You mentioned something in that letter that you didn’t understand your mother’s reaction to her attack, but I could relate to her because I am also a survivor. So, I reached out to you to explain how my mind took time to process what had happened to me. I hoped that sharing my story would give you some clarity and peace.

You responded to me almost immediately, and I think we chatted on the phone the same night. Then, the Super Bowl was in Houston that year, and I was headed down. We met in person, and you told me you were friends with Sheryl Sandberg, the then-COO of Facebook. She had recently written a book about people who persevere and mentioned you in the book. You introduced me to Sheryl, who asked me to share my story on her website publicly. I couldn’t say no to Sheryl, which led me to write an open letter to sexual assault survivors independently. My letter changed my life. Besides freeing me from years of shame and angst, it inspired me to move to Florida and start my company, The Unsealed. The Unsealed is a platform where people can write and share open letters about overcoming adversity.

Through the years, we’ve remained friends, and you have shared your story on The Unsealed’s website and several of our weekly conversations with our community. You encourage me. You inspire me, and you believe in me.

While I know we’ll always be friends, I still think it’s crazy we even met in the first place. I rarely read articles I see on LinkedIn, if ever. And it is even less often that I reach out to its author. I genuinely believe whether it was fate, or maybe your mom up there pulling strings, or one of my late loved ones, that night that I was lying in bed skimming LinkedIn, there was a larger power play – using your story and our newfound friendship – to lead me to my purpose.

Forever grateful that the stars aligned,

Dear Wylie,

In 2012, I moved to Buffalo after receiving an offer to work as a sportscaster at a local station there. While I was excited about the opportunity, I was a little nervous about moving to a new city that I had never been to before my interview and where didn’t know a single soul. While I made friends quickly, within a couple of months of living there, I felt like there was a missing piece to my life in Buffalo. And that missing piece was you.

I had this strong urge to get a puppy. Besides college and a year or two before moving to Buffalo, I have always lived with at least one dog. While I searched far and wide for the perfect puppy, I ended up getting you from the same place my parents purchased your older sister, Cayley.

As soon as we met, we were inseparable. When you were a puppy, you never wanted to leave my side – so much so that you would cry when I was in the bath, and you would often try and hop in the shower with me. You never wanted to sleep alone, and somehow you managed to win the hearts of all my neighbors, so you were rarely ever home alone.

We’ve been together for ten years, and you have been by my side through many ups and downs. You’ve growled at the boys who broke my heart, and you cuddled with me every day during 2020 – a year mostly spent with just you and me because of a global pandemic. While you like to pee everywhere, marking your territory, and you try to make babies with my parents’ Maltese, Mia, I still love you so much.

You have brought so much love, warmth, and companionship to my life. You have been a part of my journey in ways I am sure I don’t even recognize. And while we have moved to three different cities and dealt with so many unexpected challenges, one constant throughout our last ten years is the love we show and have for each other.

Thanks for always having my back and giving me kisses on command.

I love you, WyWy

With lots of hugs and kisses,

I just wanted to say that while part of tonight’s discussion was about New Year’s resolutions I heard many good points and ideas by our professional guests in the mental health field. I wanted to speak in depth more about goal setting and making plans for your own personal improvements. I agree than having a goal with a plan in place is the way to go however its the contingency plan that is the insurance policy for if you fail or temporarily lose focus. Here’s my advice. If you decide to broadcast it to the world through social media have one person that you can absolutely count on to kick you in your ass for when you lose your way. You’re going to need them. Pick the person you trust most to tell you what you need to hear not what you want to hear. We all have that someone that will keep it real with us. Let’s face it, these resolutions that our now goals with a plan you probably already tried them before right? How did you do? If you have more than one thing on your list you know you have some returning Jeopardy champions that beat you last time don’t you? Damn right you do and you’re not alone. It will be challenging as hell because if it were easy then you wouldn’t have waited until January 1st now would you? Hell no you would’ve of!

So what do we do now? We’ve got our goal, we’ve got our plan, we’ve got our backup motivational ass kicking truth teller ready to help hold you accountable. Now what? Now we ready our mindset. We believe in ourselves. We rid our minds and bodies of all the negativity junk food that is out there in the world and on social media for our ears and eyes to absorb. You surround yourself with good people. Start becoming the person you expect to be not who you want to be. A lot of people want and how does that usually go? Sounds like the path of least resistance where you hope to get lucky to hit your goal. That’s why someone’s response to your want is usually, “good luck with that” followed by an eye roll. I think you see my point. If you want to be difference choose different. If you expect that change then you must make change. If you back down that same road without change you’ll get what you’ve always gotten. that’s not enough. Not this time!

These are my words and my letter to you our community here at The Unsealed. This community is going to grow and one of the main reasons is because us as members are going to grow too as individuals and as a community. If you want special then let’s be special. We going to come in here week after week writing letters or interacting in the meetings and say how you are now better equipped to handles the situations that will be presented to us in 2023 because our mindsets became more positive, more focused so we achieved more goals which led to my increased confidence to overcome the obstacles put in front of me. I did this because I believed. I survived because when i needed it someone else believed in me to because they saw the changes I made in my life. It’s all there for us if we expect it to become our own realities.

Together we can become stronger both physically and mentally. We can and will become a better version of ourselves. The changes you’re going to make can and will become permanent. Lock in the positive mindset have your go to for support and be the amazing person your meant to be and share your talented gifts with the world. Life is short so not only get the most out of it but give to other’s lives as well. That’s what a community is meant to do.

Forget the New Year’s resolutions and create and solidify the New Me resolutions! The New Me doesn’t require a date, time or year. Your commitment to the New Me starts now! Go get it and remember to love and forgive yourself in the process. Share your success.

From the bottom of my heart

Thank you

I wanted to take some time to share my thoughts on this community. In 2020 Lauren reached out to me and talked about her business and what it represented. I immediately could feel that she’s taking a chance by leaving sportscasting but she’s found her purpose and motivation for a much greater cause. I felt that she was very brave to 1) tell her own very personal story of overcoming adversity but 2) to turn something from an idea into a business that people will buy in on. She went all in. She bet on herself. She puts in countless hours of effort towards making sure that her idea, her creation, her purpose is stainable long term. Why? Because a business needs to be financial successful? Sure. But that’s true for any business to survive and grow. I personally believe in fact I know this and know this for sure and that’s because this community that was once an idea that was hers is now a reality for all of us. I believe the biggest driver of that is because she genuinely cares for people, their lives, and protecting their stories of meaningful life events. We as members put our trust in her by sharing what we’ve experienced and how we’ve adjusted so she can share this with all of you. How great is this opportunity? To help others through what we’ve learned. Is that a new concept, no but what separates Lauren and this Unsealed community is how we go about respecting each other during this experience. It takes a lot for many people to just freely open up about their troubling past, your current challenging situation or what your afraid of about your future. We’re also having these conversations with what started as complete strangers. Maybe that makes it easier for each of us. It is in fact that safe space that’s needed. Non judgmental. Just freely speaking with a reason for positivity to be the result behind the end of every sentence. Whether your writing letters and joining us in the weekly meetings of a writing workshop or with a guest there’s always something to gain that can affect your life in a way where you carry that positivity out into the world. Kindness is a great thing to share, always. I’ve never once left a meeting where I didn’t feel better about what i learned and how i could apply that back into the world. That is purpose. That is value. We should all value our time we spend doing whatever it is that is consuming our attention at that moment. We can’t get it back so we might as well enjoy it.

To all the members that I’ve had the pleasure to get to know through our meetings to writing letters and giving feedback to messaging on other platforms I want to say thank you. I hope that in some way that our interaction has had meaning to you to help you get through this thing called life. We’re all broken people learning from each other to teach each other how we can heal one another and to fix ourselves to become the best version that we want to be. We heard so many great stories from our guests/ members on how they’ve overcame what was put in front of them. Some have to battle each and every day to stay on top of their adversity. That teaches us to never give up. Our bodies our designed to fail but our spirits are not. Even when the energy doesn’t seem to be there we rely on one another to be recharged, to be sparked by the spirit of someone else. That is humanity at its peak. At its finest being there for one another. That’s what this Unsealed community means to me.

For new members during this next calendar I say welcome. You’ve come to an amazing place. We’re glad your here and I believe you’re here for a reason. There’s so much to gain by just coming in and absorbing the knowledge from the letters, the speeches from the guests even if you’re just a spectator that’s ok. That was me when I first signed up. What I learned though in time was that I had too much to offer than to just sit back. I was encouraged to participate and I’m so thankful I did. I had too much love to not be giving back to this group. There’s so many special people in here with a variety of talents that I want them to maximize their gifts to this world. Genuinely caring is my gift. It’s not unique but I’m so glad it’s not because I know others have this gift too. This community and its creator Lauren will help bring that out of you if you let it happen. Thank you for your trust. I look forward to getting to know you and your story.

As we all face our challenges let’s remember to stick together. Support each other. There’s no boos and only cheers. If you have negative thoughts have a short memory of them and move on. Be accountable through self accountability first. It’ll change your life. Most importantly if you need my help, just ask. It’s why I love this community so much. My door will always be open to my Unsealed family because you’ve helped me more than you know.

Thank you

To My Family,

When I was a child, kids in school tried to make me feel Christmas envy. We didn’t celebrate Christmas because we are Jewish. But I never felt like I missed out on anything. We got plenty of presents on Hannukah. Also, the holiday season usually meant a fun vacation: Skiing in Vermont, the beach in Aruba, a cruise around the Caribbean, or parties in Miami. Despite not celebrating Christmas, Christmas week was usually one of the most fun weeks of the entire year.

This year, Mom and Dad, you will be with me in Florida, and my brother will be in New York with his wife. We will have Chinese food on Christmas Day and start our shopping adventures on December 26th. That’s when the really good sales kick in. We will eat too much, and I will complain that I cannot get nearly enough work done. We will send many pictures in our group chat of the items we got exceptional deals on and of our little adventures.

Our holiday season may not have a Christmas tree, reindeer, or stocking stuffer, but like many people, the end of the year is a time for food, family, and fun. And that’s no different for us. Mom, Dad and the rest of our crazy family, I have always loved the holiday season, and that’s because of how much I love all of you.

Cheers to another year of many moments of love, laughter, and a little bickering.

With love,

Dear 2022,

When the clock struck midnight on January 1st, 2022, I had high hopes for you – the upcoming year. I planned to build a new feature on The Unsealed – a pen pal system allowing users to post their content and write to each other. I was hopeful that this would be the “it” factor that would take my company to the next level. I thought I would sit back and enjoy the show once it launched.

Personally, with COVID seemingly becoming less severe, I was excited about going out more and meeting new people. Maybe date someone new – or meet some new friends in Miami.

Per usual, the year didn’t go exactly as planned. Just like every other year, there were some challenges I didn’t foresee. My mother had a cancer scare, and I lost a friend at 40 years old to brain cancer.

It was tough, but I continued to march forward as I always do.

When I launched our Pen Pal network, I quickly realized that we were helping people and had something special. However, I also realized that we laid the foundation but still needed to build the house. There are elements we need to add. We still need to figure out a flow and a clearer user-generated experience.

Outside of work, I have met new people – some were lessons, while others have been a whole lot of laughter.

While 2022 didn’t lead to everything I wanted, I feel closer to all that I desire. I evolved personally and professionally. I have a better idea of who I want in my life and what I need to do to realize my dreams.

While my hopes for next year are similar to those from last year, I am thankful for a journey filled with amazing people, passion, and purpose.

It’s been real. Thanks for the memories, 2022.

With gratitude,

Dear Unsealed Community,

When I was 19 years old, I knew exactly what I wanted. I wanted to chase my dream as a sportscaster. In pursuit of that dream,  I started working at the NBA. I commuted two hours from Columbia University to New Jersey, three days a week, because I was committed. I wanted to network with people who worked in sports. I wanted to hone my writing skills and learn more about the broadcasting industry. This job was supposed to be the first step to the rest of my life. But it nearly took me off course, and everyone, except me, thought I should be thrilled.

While working at the NBA, I met someone. He was my co-worker. We had the same schedule – or so I thought. I found out later that he was coming to work when he wasn’t scheduled to spend more time with me. We got along so well. We could talk for hours and hours about anything and everything. Soon after meeting, we started dating, and our relationship escalated quickly. Within a year, he left the NBA and began working in finance. We moved in together in an apartment in New York City and got engaged. I was only 21 years old – still a senior in college. He treated me well. We had no drama – no lying, no cheating, no bullshit—just two young people who genuinely enjoyed each other’s company.

He checked every box.

My parents were happy. My friends thought I was so lucky. And in society’s eyes, my life was going very well.

The only problem was that I was miserable. I was not ready to be someone’s wife. I didn’t want to sacrifice opportunities for my career for a relationship. My ring felt like a handcuff, chaining me to a life I didn’t yet want.

I stayed in the relationship for four years because, logically, we made sense. According to society, this relationship is what I should want. But I was so unhappy which led me to question myself more times than I could count.

“Why don’t I want this relationship?”

“How come I am not on cloud nine?”

“Isn’t this is what I should want?”

“Is there something wrong with me?”

Ultimately, it took every ounce of strength I had to end the relationship. It was one the most difficult decisions I have ever made, as I had to hurt someone I loved – someone who never would have hurt me.

However, I knew, long term, it wasn’t fair to either one of us if I stayed in a relationship that I didn’t genuinely want. In the days, weeks and months following our breakup, I felt a sense of relief and freedom. I pursued my career, moved out of New York, and I have since chased every single dream or goal I’ve ever had.

To this day, people still think I was crazy to end the relationship – especially since I am now 36 and single. But I have never had any regrets.

Looking back, I learned that sometimes we doubt ourselves when our desires differ from the expectations the world sets for us. But deep down, each of us know what we want, and all we need is the courage to pursue it relentlessly.

Be who you are – not who others expect you to be.

Dear Mom,

You once told me that you don’t worry about me because you know no matter what, I will always be OK. You said to me that throughout my life, whatever challenges I faced, I somehow always managed to persevere. You told me you know me better than anyone else. After all, you’re not only my mother but also my best friend.

You know everything about me.

Mom, through all my life’s challenges, you have been by my side.

When my fourth-grade crush pretended to throw up when he found out I liked him, you told me, “Don’t worry, you’re beautiful, and there will be plenty of boys that will like you.”

When my first love broke my heart, “You told me to let it go – not to give him the power to make me sad or ruin my day.

When I did poorly on a test in school, you would spend hours studying with me.

When my boyfriend died, “You cried with me at the funeral.”

When I started The Unsealed, “You told me to go for it.”

And each day, when I share my fears and worries as an entrepreneur, you tell me to keep going. You tell me you believe in me. You give me ideas, and you help me to keep pushing.

Mom, you have seen me bounce back from a broken heart, disappointment in my career, and loss. And while, yes, I have always been OK, I believe it is because I have always had you.

I love you so much. Your support, love, and constant presence are the secret to my strength.

Thank you,

To The Unsealed Community,

When I graduated high school, I honestly didn’t know what to expect from myself.

After getting waitlisted, I got accepted to Columbia in mid-June of my senior year of high school. At the time, Columbia ranked top five in the nation. And while I was thrilled to be accepted, there was a part of me that was unsure if I was worthy of the admission.

I told my family I wasn’t sure if I wasn’t smart enough to go, and I was considering going elsewhere.

My brother, who had just graduated from Columbia, responded, “If you don’t take this opportunity, you will regret it for the rest of your life. I promise you will be able to do the work.”

I trusted my brother and decided to attend, even though I was scared and uncertain if I would measure up to my peers.

My first year at Columbia was by far the hardest. My grades depended on papers, and I wasn’t the best writer. Not to mention, we had to take many required classes – some of which I found pretty boring. But I muscled through it, and I was determined to thrive.

Thankfully, Columbia had a writing center where tutors looked through your paper sentence by sentence and provided feedback. I spent hours each week at the writing center, and after a year or so, my writing significantly improved. So much so that in the last two years of college, I received an A on every single paper I submitted.

It’s hard to believe that I almost passed down an incredible opportunity because I didn’t believe in myself.

Now, whatever challenge I face in life, I still don’t know what to expect from myself. But my experience at Columbia taught me that if I push myself and work hard, I should always expect to surprise myself.

We are all capable of way more than we even know.

Always believe in your greatness,

To The Unsealed Community,

When I was ten years old, I was in love.

I grew up in the 1990s, and like most other girls in my generation, I thought Jonathan Taylor Thomas, aka JTT, was my future husband. He played Randy on Tim Allen’s Home Improvement. I had posters of him in my room, and I listened to love songs imagining the two of us on long walks in the park.

Ahead of my eleventh birthday, my father asked what I wanted as a gift.

I told my Dad, “I would like to meet JTT.”

My Dad chuckled and said, “What’s your second choice?”

I said, “Dad, there is no second choice. That is what I want.”

He told me he didn’t have that kind of power. So, I said fine and told him I would figure it out myself.

Later that week, I went on the internet and started searching. I knew there had to be a way to meet my crush. It wasn’t long before I stumbled across a charity event for Audrey Hepburn’s charity for children. The event hosted movie premiers, fashion shows, and after-parties with child stars in New York City, forty minutes away from my home. The list of child actors had to be one hundred deep: Mara Wilson, Michelle Trachtenberg, Rider Strong, Devon Sawa, and, sure enough, Jonathan Taylor Thomas.

Tickets for events were cheap – $10 -$40 per event, per person. So, for my birthday, my mother and I got a hotel room in the city, and I attended JTT’s premiere of the movie Wild America. I manipulated my way to the front of the crowd and befriended JTT’s security, who arrived at the theater a half hour before JTT did. As luck would have it, like every other man in the world, the security guard had a crush on my mother. I ended up in the elevator with JTT and got a picture and a kiss on the cheek. And then, he sat right behind me in the theater. I swear there were moments when he leaned forward, and I could feel him breathing on my neck. The next day at the fashion show, the security guard snuck us backstage. I met nearly every star there, and my 11-year-old self was in heaven.

One of the qualities I love most about myself is I go after what I want. I don’t take no for an answer. I believe I was born with this relentless and determined spirit.

Whether it was meeting JTT at eleven years old, becoming a sportscaster in my 20s, or starting a business in my 30’s, I have never taken “No” for an answer. No has always just meant, “Find another way.”

Through the years, the stakes have increased, and the challenges are sometimes even more unrealistic. But without looking back, I have continued after whatever I have wanted in life.

Even if some days are hard, I live life with no regrets, no what ifs or would have, could have, should haves.

And while I may not have married JTT, like I once planned. Going after him, along with all the other things I love in life, has made me love myself and all that I am even more.

This was the morning that my mother’s body finally gave out from battling multiple forms of cancer since her diagnosis. Cancer never took her smile, sense of humor or her positive attitude even while battling this disease at the same time as my 16 year old sister from 1996 until my mom’s passing in 97. Having my sister in my life made figuring out how to adapt to life without being her son a less challenging journey. I had hoped we’d have more time to figure this out together but unfortunately my sister’s cancer journey was leading her closer to being with my mom again instead of the path I was learning to navigate. God’s plan was greater than ours when my sister passed from her battle in April of 2000. What I’ve learned over the years since then is that so many of us with our families, friends, and other loved ones have had their own unique stories of how this disease has altered their lives. I’m always very deeply touched when I hear the success stories of those who are or have battled their own battles and have came out the other side as survivors! Hearing that gives me hope for the present and future. As millions of dollars continue to go into cancer research for treatments I pray for a cure for all cancers in my lifetime. What I feel is as important if not more is that I want much more effort to be done to find the actual causes to this disease especially for what is approved by the FDA for what’s in the food we eat and what we drink. I feel this would be a major step forward in minimizing the amount of causes by eliminating some of their sources to begin with. All I wish is that we’d attack the cause as much as we do the cure. If this would save even one more person It’d be worth it.

I’m thankful to choose to celebrate my mom’s life today as I have in many year’s past. I spent 23 years with her influencing my life by being here and now 25 years remembering her memories and lessons that she taught me. I’ve adjusted away from grief years ago because it’s better for your mental health to let it go if you’re ready too. Choose to be happy because that’s what time was like with them so why would they want me to be any different without them? I’d hope if you’ve read this far down that the sharing of this story can help you move past your own loss. At some point you have to be willing to put the heavy weight of grief down behind you and move forward. I think the greatest gift we can give the one’s we’ve lost is to honor them with appreciation of our own lives that we’re blessed to wake up with today. Our reason to exist today is to simply make a positive impact on each other’s lives in community. If you can do that very thing then we are truly getting value out of our purpose for living. With that being said, have fun doing it!

To The Unsealed Community,

Typically, I am not someone who visibly shows the world how I feel. Whether it was a big loss in sports as a teenager or in fourth grade when a boy pretended to throw up when he found out I liked him, I have often, without even trying, kept a poker face.

But how I look doesn’t always reflect how I feel.

During my first year of college, I was having the time of my life: a new school, a new romance, a new city, and lots of new friends.

I looked like a happy, typical college student exploring an exciting new world. And in many ways, I was just that. However, amid this incredible adventure and privilege, there were moments I was overwhelmed and nearly debilitated by fear.

When the sun went down, I was terrified to walk on campus alone. It was only a year and a half since I had been drugged and sexually assaulted by two strangers. I felt so vulnerable that someone could hurt me again at any moment. Whether walking back from dinner, a party, or my boyfriend’s dorm, whenever I was by myself at night, my heart would race, and I would feel this aching pit in my stomach.

Sometimes, when I made it safely, I would go to a bathroom stall or somewhere private and let out a few tears, just as a sigh of relief. Walking at night on what was a beautiful and, statistically speaking, safe campus was a horrible, unsettling feeling – one that I had no idea if it would ever go away.

There are many ways I could have responded. I could have gone home – quit school, and simply remained in the confines of my parents’ home. I could have stopped going out and stayed in my room after dark. I could have withdrawn entirely and hidden from all my fears.

But I didn’t. Instead, my 17-year-old self, consciously or subconsciously, chose to be brave.

I dared to ask for what I needed and took advantage of those offering to help. I told my boyfriend I was scared and asked him to walk me home from parties or back to my dorm room. If he wasn’t available, there were five other 6’5 football players who told me to call or text whenever I needed someone to walk me home.

I had the courage to keep showing up, to keep walking, and to ask for what I needed, knowing deep down I didn’t want this fear to hold me back. No matter how often my heart raced or I got that pain in my stomach, I kept going out. I kept meeting friends, and  attending parties and clubs. Daily, I left my comfort zone, which allowed me to fully enjoy the college experience.

While I still don’t love walking alone at night, my anxiety doesn’t reach the level it once did. And because I didn’t let my fear stop me then, I certainly won’t let my fear stop me now.

Dear Mom and Dad,

When I was a child, we went on trips to Disney World, Aruba, California, and Vermont. We went to zoos and parks and all sorts of places. I played soccer worldwide, as we traveled as far as Italy to compete. While each of those memories is special, one of my favorite memories growing up is a bit simpler.

Every day from first grade until my senior year, one of you drove me to school – sometimes a half hour away. I played soccer for teams all over the state, and you drove me to practice and games several times a week. In addition, you also took me to girl scouts, Hebrew school, tennis lessons, dance, acting classes, and who knows what else. With all these activities, it was often just one of you in the car and me. If it were dad and me, we’d often talk about soccer or school. Dad, you’d pump me up and build my confidence. It was in those car rides you told me I could do anything I wanted in life.

Mom, if I were in the car with you, we’d blast music like NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys and talk about life. On one of those car rides, while cruising down the New York State Thruway, we decided the song “This is My Promise to You” by NSYNC would be OUR song.

Those car rides are some of my most cherished memories from my childhood. It was moments I had your full attention – while me and the road, of course. I could talk to you about anything, and we weren’t distracted by other people or the noise of the rest of the world. It was just us. The attention made me feel loved and important. In those car rides, I found a safe space to share my fears and doubts and tell you about whatever was on my mind. Dad told me stories that included life lessons, while mom always was positive and reassuring.

It was in those car rides I learned to believe in myself.

While sometimes, we as human beings try to create great memories – planning big trips or throwing huge parties – for me, the best memories have always been the ones we didn’t even realize we were creating.

I Love you both.

P.S. I owe you some gas money

As we are here at the US Open Finals weekend, I can’t help but see the similarities of the path through the bracket as it pertains to life in general. When you are born into this world where you land isn’t up to you. You could be seeded anywhere in life. Few are placed in top seeded environments while some others do get seeded but they’re somewhere in the middle while the vast majority of us go unseeded but you’re still in the game of life. Where we start in life can predetermine our odds but with that comes no guarantees that success is in your future. Each day can be a match where your expectations and the expectations of others might feel like today should be very successful with limited challenges to face. There are days where everything does work out for you and easy feels like a great day. Your next day may be projected the same way but you’re presented with unexpected roadblocks where you’re just not on point and life feels like you should be in play but your best efforts are landing out of bounds. Yet somehow you made it through even though in your mind you know your day should’ve felt like a walk over. Then as you advance on there’s a very significant test staring you right in your face and you know the night before you must be prepared or you may not win the day. The day is now here and you wake up ready to go full of confidence. I got this. I can do it. I believe in myself and my abilities. I’m going to win. Nothing and no one’s going to stop me from achieving my goal today. My clothes fit just right and look great. My shoe game is on point. My racquet grip is perfectly wrapped. Let’s play! Your start to this match is holding serve like the champion you are. Then you play on only to have your opponent give you that resistance. You planned for it. Here we go except this challenge turns out to bigger, faster and stronger than expected and now you find yourself down 2 sets. You battle back. The match is tied and momentum is behind you. You’ve fought to be points away from winning your game, your set, your match, your championship, your day but so has your opponent. You’re right where you want to be, where you expected to be and you can see the trophy being placed in your hands. Unfortunately, life hits you with an immediate back hand. You’re stunned. It’s now set point for your opposition. How can I recover? Oh, wait they’re ready to serve. I’m not ready and here comes the ball. I swing and…..
How do you want this match to end? An ending that you hit the return on the serve and you won the point? You battled back. YOU WON THE CHAMPIONSHIP!!! What if they hit an ace and now the match is over. They outlasted you best effort. THEY won the championship!

The point of my story is no matter where your seeded in life the journey is ultimately yours. You control the things you can control and let go of the things you can’t. Learn from your lessons that the game of life presents to you every day no matter if the path seems smooth or if the struggle is real. Everybody has a player’s box to looks towards for support through passion, inspiration, and the greatest support of all, Love. Some player’s boxes are bigger than others with all different members representing family, friends, and coaches. They’re behind you win or lose because they see all the work you put in and how much you care for your success, your sport, and for your loved ones but today maybe it wasn’t enough to declare victory on a scoreboard but you won your match in the game of life. Do you know why? Because while your journey started with a player’s box adding people along the way your daily performance has now established a following where your box now fits in a stadium. Within that stadium you now have an extension of your support system called fans. Fans of you because they too see a light within you that they want to be a part of even if it’s from a distance farther away than the ones closest to you. This is the part where I tie in the very platform to where this stadium stands and that’s The Unsealed. This community of fans are sitting in those very seats just outside your player’s box. We’re here in attendance to cheer you on through the ups and downs of your point, your set, your match of life. When you’ve fell to the court whether it be in defeat or in celebration, you’ll feel the energy of positive support here. There are no stories that can’t be told. There are no losers, only champions. Alone doesn’t exist here if you allow acceptance into your heart, mind and spirit. The tournament director, she’s very accommodating. No matter what round of your tournament you’re in there’s an open bracket for you and your seeding doesn’t matter. The tournament invites are unlimited and so is the seating. I feel I can speak for everyone and say that she can serve and volley kindness with anyone.

As champions prepare to get crowned just remember there’s great stories to be told on both sides of the net. One trophy won’t define an entire lifetime but will be one of their most memorable days of their life. Treat people like the champions that they are. Like no scoreboard exists. We all can drop a game or a set but we also can be that fan in the seats giving a standing ovation. Let’s root for each other.

If you need me, I’ll be there to meet you at the net to shake your hand.
Have a great match today everyone!

Your fan,