Everything I Want To Say To The Guy Who Never Realized My Worth

We all know the saying, "You don't know what you've got until it's gone." And as cliché as it may sound, it's the truth.

At some point in life, we all fall, but we all manage to get up. Let's just be realistic and point out the fact that not everyone gets up as quickly as others.

I'll be the first to admit I fell rather hard, and the healing process was a lot more than just dusting myself off.

Although I can gladly speak on my own behalf, it's a lot easier to speak on my ex's instead (for obvious reasons, of course).

So, dear ex...

I knew what I had, but unfortunately, the same can't be said for you.

It's funny how you're always hitting up my phone more now that you're gone than you did when I was around.

But because of you, there is ample room for the next guy who stumbles into my life and decides he wants to stick around. While I should have known it all along, you helped me realize just how much I was worth.

It sucked to give you my all, only to get a portion back in return, but I know now what not to do in the future.

It should've been 50/50, not 80/20 in our relationship. Reciprocity is so important.

While I should have known it all along, you helped me realize just how much I was worth.

Because of you, I now know how a gentleman should treat a woman.

I'll admit I crave attention, but was that really too much to ask for? What man doesn't enjoy giving an attractive, young lady some attention and getting the same in return?

I stuck around a lot longer than I should have. And truth be told, it became exhausting. It wasn't the fact that I stuck around that was exhausting, but rather, the fact that I stuck around and you didn't notice why I was doing it.

I cared. I always did. While everyone looked at me like I was absolutely insane for giving every single bit of myself and not getting anything back in return, I still continued to look at you like you were the best thing that ever happened to me.

At the end of the day, you didn't show me attention, but you showed me something much more important: Self-worth.

You showed me that I don't need someone to stick around to make me happy, especially if they aren't as equally genuinely happy with me being in their life.

You showed me that sharing is not always caring, and I refuse to come second or third to other things in anyone's life — no matter how much I may have cared.

You showed me that sometimes it hurts, but pain doesn't always last (it just seems to last a lot longer than we thought it would).

You showed me there are plenty of fish in the sea. Some fish are willing to swim across the ocean, while others won't even bother.

You showed me happiness. Not because you cared, but because you helped me realize that, in the end, I cared about myself way too much to stick around and be mistreated.

So for that, I thank you.

If it counts for anything, I still care.

It's just not enough to sit around and wait for you to realize my worth.