"Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Always be kind!!" . . This photo was taken two and a half years ago and it was the first time I had the courage to wear a bikini on the beach as an amputee. I remember standing there and feeling so incredibly self conscious, comparing myself to what everyone else looked like. People were staring and some even pointed and I felt like I needed to go and hide, but then something wonderful happened. A lady who I had never met before walked up to me and whispered "you are beautiful". I cried and then smiled. She will never know how much I needed to hear that right then, and she will never know how those simple kind words changed my day and my life. When I wear my bikini on the beach or at the pool now and people stare or I feel uncomfortable in my skin, I think of that day and those simple words and hold my head up high. . Be kind and say kind things to people, because you never know how much you can change a person's life ...