It's all about the climb...

When I heard that Miley was writing a book about her life, I have to admit, I was a little skeptical. What does a Hollywood starlet know about the real world? She gets everything she wants, living the life most girls her age can only dream about.

What I read surprised me. I've been flip flopping (is that a word?) on how I feel about Miley and what I think of her for a while now. I have a whole new respect for her now. She's just like the rest of us. She had to deal with the mean girls, family drama, falling in love & having her heart break into a million pieces when it didn't work out.

I cried through a good majority of it. The book is dedicated to her Pappy and she spends an entire chapter talking about him. Miley was about the same age I was when my grandpa passed away. He had been sick for a long time and we knew it was coming, but that doesn't make it hurt any less. I remember his funeral like it was yesterday. To this day, the sound of gunshots brings me to tears. See, my grandpa had been in the military and served as a Marine. When he passed, he got a full military funeral, which included a 21 gun salute. I remember sitting on my uncle's lap (who would die in a car accident a few wks later) sobbing. I can't help but wonder what Grandpa would say to me today if he was still here. Would he think I was crazy for all the big dreams I have? What words of wisdom would he give me? I like to think that my grandpa would tell me to do whatever made me happy and not worry about what everyone else says & thinks. I wonder what he would think of my writing. I don't remember my grandpa much when he was healthy, so a lot of my memories of him are in hospital rooms and laying in bed. He was still strong and a man of great faith. I miss him and hope that I'm making him proud.

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Family is also a huge part of this book. Miley spends a lot of time talking about her mom and dad, brothers & sisters. Even though her father was famous, by their lifestyle, you would have never known it. Miley talks about growing up in rural Tenessee, a farm complete with horses, cows and chickens. She was a normal kid and still is. She may be a superstar in every sense of the world, but Miley is still the same girl she was when she left Tenessee. She's extremely grounded. I was kinda surprised to find Scripture throughout the book, but it reminded me of how I live my own life. My faith defines me and without it I would be lost, in both the physical and spiritual sense of the word. No matter what heights of fame she or her siblings reach (her brother is 1/2 of the band Metro Station, as if you didn't already know that) when they come home, it's life as it's always been. That's probably been one of the hardest things to accept about moving away to go to college. I'm still part of my family, but in the same sense, I'm not. I'm not home everyday for the daily drama of "I had a fight with Adam" or "Sam won't wash the dishes!" but when I come home, it's like some things haven't changed at all. I still sit around and quote movie lines with my sister. We actually had an entire conversation like that a few days ago. I play with my dog and catch up with old friends. I may live in 2 different worlds, but at home, I can go back to being the stupid, nerdy girl who secretly (or not so secretly now) loves to watch Star Wars & dance around with my sisters like no one is watching.

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And then there's PRINCE CHARMING. Really Miley? Like we all didn't know PC is Nick Jonas. For those of you who really didn't know, where have you been?! I like the reason she gives for calling him PC and not his name: "I don't want to use his name because this isn't about who he is or what I meant to him. It's about how I felt and what our relationship meant to me." How often is that the truth? It never matters what the guys name is or what you mean to him, because I promise, as a girl, you're going to read more into things than he does. The little things that he forgets as soon as you break up are the reasons you can't let him go. I applaude Miley for handling the subject as maturly as she did. But I also agree with Nick when he says that it was a "young relationship." Everyone has those. You're first real crush. The one that no matter what happens, will stay with you for the rest of your life. Having to let go of them is probably one of the hardest things I've ever done in my almost 19 yrs. on Earth. I honestly believe that Miley really cared for PC (lol. i just realized that PC is also a computer. sorry! I don't feel like typing Prince Charming every 2 seconds. :P ) and maybe he did too, but not necessicarily in the same way. This book had to have printed pretty fast because she talks about the last time she saw PC: "...we hugged. I closed my eyes for a moment. It was a strange hug, but I did not want to let go. In that moment, I just wanted to imagine that it was two years ago, and things were the way they used to be."

Is this the hug Mrs. Miley is talking about??

I'm not going to speculate about what will happen with them. I wish them both the best in their respective careers and whatever else the future holds. "It's hard to imagine that our love is a story with an end."

Overall, I loved this book. It's been a while since I found a book worth staying up all night for. I liked the style, which was almost a memoir with a bit of creative journaling. I recommend it for any Miley fan and even those who aren't. She may only be 16, but Miley is someone that I admire and look up to. No, I don't agree with everything she does, but I also don't agree with a lot of things some of my best friends do. She could be doing a lot worse than what she is. I'm excited to see where her career will take her and where she is in 10 years once the glamour of "Hannah Montana" is gone.

It's been a while since I ended with some song lyrics. We'll go with some Miley today, an excerpt from the hit song in her new HM movie (in theaters April 10...yep! had to go double check)

The Climb

I can almost see it

That dream I'm dreaming but

There's a voice inside my head sayin,

You'll never reach it,

Every step I'm taking,

Every move I make feels

Lost with no direction

My faith is shaking but I

Got to keep trying

Got to keep my head held high

There's always going to be another mountain

I'm always going to want to make it move

Always going to be an uphill battle,

Sometimes I'm gonna to have to lose,

Ain't about how fast I get there,

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side

It's the climb

The struggles I'm facing,

The chances I'm taking

Sometimes they knock me down but

No I'm not breaking

I may I know it

But these are the moments that

I'm going to remember most yeah

Just got to keep going

And I, I got to be strong

Just keep pushing on,

There's always going to be another mountain

I'm always going to want to make it move

Always going to be an uphill battle,

Sometimes I'm gonna to have to lose,

Ain't about how fast I get there,

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side

It's the climb