Scars & Stars: My Beginning

There are moments in life that leave scars, and others that remind us to look up at the stars. My story holds both. This is where The Survival Journal begins. With honesty, pain, hope, and the lessons that carried me forward.

Life hasn't been simple. I've had to start over in new places more than once, carrying not just belongings but heavy emotions too. There have been times when trust was broken by people I thought would stand by me, and seasons when I felt invisible or betrayed.

Those scars are part of me. They remind me of nights I cried in silence, days I felt too tired to try again, and moments when survival seemed like the only goal.

Being a mother, beginning again in a new country, and learning to rebuild while carrying both responsibility and fear, these are not easy stories to tell. Survival has meant working through exhaustion, loneliness, and the pressure of being "strong" when inside I was breaking. But even in those hardest moments, I found small reasons to keep going: my children's laughter, the quiet comfort of prayer, and the realization that each day survived was already a victory.

Not everything is darkness. Alongside the scars, there have always been stars that were small shining reminders that hope was still possible. Sometimes they appeared in the kindness of strangers. Sometimes in the pages of scripture when I needed a word of reassurance. And sometimes in myself, in resilience I didn't know I even had. Those stars don't erase the scars but they shine alongside them. And together, they make up the story of survival.

Scars & Stars is where my writing begins because it's the truest reflection of who I am: someone shaped by pain, but also guided by hope.

This is not a story of perfection, or even of constant strength. It's a story of learning, healing, and holding on. If you've ever felt broken but kept moving forward, then you already know what it means to live with both scars and stars.

This is just the beginning of my journey here. I hope my stories remind you that you're not alone. What has your own journey of survival taught you?