Hi there! It’s me, justaperson, a teenage writer that you decided to follow whenever.

Thank you for being so supportive!

I started to write more frequently once I found this website. Between the challenges and random thoughts that came to me, I slowly started to spread my wings on here.

Once again, thank you all for being so supportive! Without all of you, I don't think I would still be on Prose today.

Thank you for letting me vent when needed, and helping me see the views of others.

Thank you for being so chill about others' opinions (though I do see some lovely arguments between the best of us).

Thank you all for letting me be me, and accepting me for me, something I don't always do.

Thank you for welcoming me when I started and helping me grow.

Thank you for being such kind and caring folks, and supporting not just me, but others on this amazing website.

Thank you for learning and growing right alongside me.

Thank you for reaching out, introducing yourself to me.

Thank you for being you.

I love you all and wish you the best of luck in anything you try to accomplish!

Keep imagining,

Keep talking,

and most importantly,

Keep writing!

- Kat

aka justaperson

It's been said that one man's - woman's! - trash is another person's treasure, so I thank all of you, my followers, for treasuring those works which I often think of as trash. Even when I've called my stuff "ca-ca" (*cough*) shortly after posting something, you guys - gals! - come out of the wordwork to applaud me and pass my words on, thereby warming the cockles of my heart. When I think I'm just a hopeless wreck who should never again dare to pick up a keyboard, pen, pencil, crayon, you go out of your way to assure me that I should, in fact, pick up a crayon - or even a keyboard, on my really good days! - again, and I am so thankful for that.

So thank you, one and all, my reliable quicker picker-uppers for lifting me when I need it most, for not pointing out my nakedness when I have bared myself to you, for not telling me to get a life. Because writing IS my life, and I am so grateful to you all for breathing along with me.

I'll also grudgingly add that I'm "thankful" for when you've called me on it when I've put my less than best foot forward on something. I wouldn't be getting better without you.

P.S. I know I haven't been as present as I have been in the past, but rest assured, I am around, and I do still care and love you all.

Seriously. I kinda don’t. I mean, there aren’t really words to describe how grateful I am for you guys. When I first joined this website, I figured it was kind of like one of those sites where you never get seen. But that’s not the case here at all. The community is wonderful. It’s amazing to have access to all these contests and everyone’s fantastic work in response to them. And out of all these prosers, you’ve chosen to recognize me for my writing and my work, and that really means a lot to me. Thank you? Thank you doesn’t really convey the message. Anyone can say thank you. Very rarely does one mean it. But I mean it now. Thank you for taking the time to respond, like, comment, repost, and follow me and my work. It’s amazing how open minded and accepting everyone here is. And it’s even better because it’s anonymous. I’m 90 percent sure that I know none of you in real life, yet you still notice me through a website/app. It’s awesome. Really. And now I think I’m repeating myself, so I’m going to shut up.

The community is so diverse, and it’s nice to know that the people here enjoy my work. :D

Thanks for taking the time to notice me.

Love,

A.C. Wolfe

I spent my life carrying the burden of my words, thinking I had to shoulder them alone. And then I found this magic place, a place where my thoughts could rest. I thought of it as a journal of sorts, and who cares if the world could read it. But it is so much more. I thought I was screaming into an internet void, but then the void called back. A voice reached out and I thought then, perhaps I’m not alone. So thank you for your kind words, your encouragment. For taking the time to read my thoughts, to send a like my way. It’s such a small task, but you’ve no idea what it means to me. I’m not a person who does sentiment well, so forgive me for the lack of flowery prose. But you deserve to know that you’ve become a second home, this place a sanctuary from my ordinary world. For once in twenty-seven years of life, I believe that this is something I could be--not just something I could do. And that’s because of all of you.

Sincerly,

Nicole C. Westerhouse

This message is for you, and I mean every word:

@sandflea68 @Abcde @ALifeWitArt @JamesMByers @17 @Mnezz @CreativeChaos @EstherFlowers1 @MsH @Jumotki @HawkishUnderdog @AndiLutz @JimLamb @Acadec56 @AndyBetz @Tee_Hi @Noveltunity @stu_andrews @JRose @wetpetals

@IvyBee @lostAlice @isha07 @JSuggs @Brandi333 @Fortbruce @Eril_Alvaro @Bntf10 @demcmurphy @SCOTtFREE @MillieWartinez @Keggruel @WhiteWolfe32 @Whatif86 @Lepakko @AWalk @BrettHemmings1 @sherifmekdam @Amu @nk_prince @thechristo4d @Abramburica @kelsihammons @Fur_Trash

To all my followers, I truly appreciate the support and confidence you provide me with. When I first started writing on Prose, I honestly was scared of how my writing would be received; I almost didn't want to post anything. But I'm happy to say that the amount of support and kindness I've received here has been overwhelming. The majority of it has been from my followers. It means so much to me that you take time out of your own day to like, comment on, and read my writing. That is so valuable to me, and I cherish it more than words can ever say. So I'll just say this again: thank you.

To everyone I've met here,

A sincere thank you for letting me be myself and accepting all the things I say and post and am. I have never been good at expressing my feelings, and have only ever done so to Microsoft Word through writing. I am honored that you all have been so welcoming to me and I love that no matter what I post I feel free to share whatever I am feeling or thinking. I never expected signing up for this website to change me so much, but I am happier now. And that was really important for me, because I've been feeling alone.

So again, thanks to everyone!!! <3

P.S. Can we like name the Prose community? Like idk 'We are Prosers' doesn't sound too hot; maybe we need a mascot? Lol just an idea, lemme know what you think!

A big thanks to all the readers of mind!

To the writers who taught me to read human mind and how to carve it beautifully in words.

I came across this tiny world while surfing through the huge world of writers and readers unaware that this tiny world is in itself a great luminary of thoughts and mind, around which the huge world revolves.

To all the stars out here; just like the stars in sky, you made this person of letters (me) a part of your family, making me radiate more flamboyantly.

Your presence and winsome pieces brightened my dim lights of mind and life.

Thanks for appreciating and encouraging me to be a person of thoughts and values.

Your letters not only inspire me to write but to learn a person’s soul; to be a good human being.

Indeed! You are my family, my happy escape and a mini vast world <3

My world of happiness!

My world of soulfriends!

Thank you!!!!

Keep writing,

Keep learning,

Keep diving,

Keep inspiring.....

Dear followers,

Thank you so much for all of your overwhelming support! Your kindness and encouragement have helped me when I didn't believe in myself or my writings.

This site has helped me improve so much. I would tell you to read my very first to show just how much, but it's kinda embarrassing, so I'm literally begging on my knees that you not do that. Thanks.

Okay, where was I?

You guys are amazing--so nice and kind that you've restored my faith in humanity and made me aspire to be nice and kind, too.

Not only that, there's nothing I love more than reading all of your stories. Each of you creates worlds that I get lost in, forgetting everything around me.

So I just want to thank you guys again, though words could never express just how much you guys mean to me.

Sincerely,

Abigail, a.k.a chainedinshadow

In gratitude,

To my followers:

I’m not a terribly consistent person to follow. And I mostly upload my poetry and very little prose, so you don’t see much of what I write (cause I write a lot of prose...). But I think of you when I choose what to upload. When it isn’t for a challenge, I consider what you might like, and more importantly, what might be relevant to your life. Because you're important, and I don't write carelessly (or flawlessly, but I'll grow, right?). If I've written, there is a reason I've done so.

And if you read it, I'm grateful.

I’m pretty sure you could tell me my own themes without hesitation...they’re kinda obvious. I like to write about all that is good, beautiful, and true. Compassion, hope, truth, mercy, firmness of purpose, conviction--these are a few of my favorite things...

You are very patient with that. I hope that it is because you see the need for these in our world, in your own life, or in the lives of those you encounter.

I have, however, been asked why before. Why do I write so hopefully? Why am I so consistently optimistic?

I assure you: I am not optimistic, but I do agree that I am hopeful. Optimism is utterly useless and easily shattered, while hope is true and unbreakable.

I am of the utmost certainty that our happiness lies in reality and not in the make-believe, or in the ebb and flow of emotions, or in the security of ignorance and selective vision. And so everything that goes on the page is meant to be lived out in even the most minute moments of life. Every thought that passes through my head and every word I write is connected inseparably to reality. So, dear followers, if my fantasy worlds and imagined moments do not reflect reality and draw upon the real hopes and desires of man...forgive me, I have failed us both.

Remember, though, I do not dwell upon what is ugly, false, and evil in our world. So if you don't see enough of that in my writing, it is because I am quite sure you see a great deal too much of it in your daily lives. I will never deny that the ugly, the false, and the evil exist and take place, and I will never skirt around them, but I will always combat them with the good, the true, and the beautiful--which also exist, though we seem to forget that all too often.

And that, my dear readers, is why.

I hope it was as thorough an explanation as it was long-winded (I always am...).

I'm so grateful that you read my work. I'm so grateful that you think about what I've written. I'm so grateful you and I have a connection we otherwise may never have had.

I am grateful for you--grateful that you've followed me, yes, but mostly grateful that you exist. I really, truly am. You always show me a new facet of reality and teach me new ways to hope. And that is very, very dear indeed.

A Guideline to what @HopeMarie means in her terribly unoriginal comments:

“Thank you so much!” “Thanks!”

Read: Wow. I still can’t believe people enjoy my work...I’m so grateful. Yup, 'thanks' actually means 'thanks'.

“I’m so glad you enjoyed it!” ”:)” ”:D”

Read: Real time emotions. I am currently experiencing actual happiness inside that you enjoyed my writing. Your likes and comments motivate me, as well as make me grateful that I write.

"That's so sweet!"

Read: That's so sweet! I really, truly think so. Yep.

"[insert personalized different comment than usual]”

Read: Every word I write in a comment is intentional. I ponder it before I write it and after I write it. I’m not over-analyzing and there isn’t any sort of insecurity or fear behind it (don’t worry), but I just prefer to be sincere at all times. I want you to read exactly what I mean and to know that I mean exactly what I’ve written. You might notice that this doesn’t mean I take away all of my passionate digressions or some ’eh’s and ’haha’s and smiley faces here and there. Sincerity requires honesty, and if it’s in my comment, it honestly reflects something about what I mean or how my thought process went as I wrote it.

"I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder."

-G.K. Chesterton

And so, thank you followers, again and again. I am truly, absolutely, without-a-doubt grateful.

-HopeMarie

Many thanks to Prose and fellow Prosers, followers official and surreptitious; indeed to all of you who read my posts: I'm so glad we have this space, this little haven, to share and evaluate our thoughts (whether written or not). The lives we live are for the most part shut up in our minds. We read and respond too often in silence, so I'm particularly grateful to those who take the time to hazard a comment on any write of mine, as well as throughout the site. I am convinced that we have the opportunity to grow, each in our own time, and the fragments of shed husks or skin left herein will somehow act as guidance for ourselves or others to see from where we've come. 

#TaggingAllmyFollowersInSpirit #Challenge