101 Things I'm Thankful For +1

On Thanksgiving day growing up, each individual around the dinner table would mention one thing they were thankful for. 

Today I'm going to give you much more.

101 Things I'm Thankful For + 1

1. Jesus, My Savior, My Friend

2. My stellar children

3. My stud of a husband

4. My friends (the good ones) 😊

5. My exceptional parents

6. My amazing siblings

7. People who are kind

8. People who are happy

9. People who are understanding

10. People who are accepting

11. People who are caring

12. People who are honest

13. My church family 

14. Music, all kinds of music 🎶

15. Grand pianos (if they're in tune!) 

16. Every beautiful instrument

17. The ability to sing (you know, when I'm not hacking)

18. Books! 📚

19. Clean romance! 💕

20. Clean movies

21. WATERFALLS

22. Holidays 

23. Christmas music

24. When someone else cooks

25. When someone else does the dishes

26. Mountains 🌄

27. The never-ending ocean

28.  Food

29. My Writers' Group ✍️

30. HOT showers, especially long ones

31. Sleep!

32. Medicine

33. Doctors

34. Policemen

35. Firemen

36. People who fight for freedom!

37. Veterans

38. My free country

39. The constitution

40. The scriptures

41. Heaters

42. Glowing fires 🔥

43. Warm blankets

44. TREES 🌳

45. Sunshine ☀️

46. Water sports 

47. The opportunity to watch my amazing daughter play volleyball! 🏐

48. And my amazing son play tennis!🎾

49. Marching bands

50. Live orchestras

51. Live theater

52. Big choirs

53. Intimate choirs

54. Parks

55. Sunday strolls with my love

56. Deep conversations with friends

57. People who love me even though they know my imperfections well

58. Good book reviews

59. Book sales

60. People who are sincere

61. Family game nights

62. Impromptu family dance parties

63. Santa Clause 🎅🏼

64. Christmas morning 🎄

65. Winter vacation

66. Summer vacation!!

67. Spring break 

68. Milk

69. COLD water

70. My dentist (yes, really!)

71. Jokes 

72. Lagoon

73. All my many wonderful family memories 

74. The ability, opportunity and privilege to pray to God

75. Answers to prayers

76. Forgiveness of God

77. Forgiveness of others

78. Honest educators

79. The computer in my pocket (my phone)

79. Google

80. MY BED

81. Electricity

82. Running water 

83. THE VOICE

84.  Late-night story reading with my kids and their cousins

85. My imagination that comes up with pretty cool fiction people

86. Snuggly cats

87. Ice cream 🍦

88. Family bike rides 🚲

89. One-on-one conversations with my child

90. All children

91. The incredible youth at church

92. The outstanding youth leaders that work with me at church

93. The gracious parents of my daughter's volleyball team

94. My children's good choices

95. My children's good friends

96. My husband's hugs

97. Hugs from anyone, really

98. Family road trips

99. Rain

100. Homemade pie 🥧

101. My journal

+ 1 My faith

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! 

🦃🥧❤️

"We Are One World, One People"

So much of the news and other media is filled with anger, contention, competition, resentment, jealousy, blaming, pride, self-aggrandizing, mockery, bullying, abuse, and even hate. How did the world get this way? 

Some people live in poverty. Some live with a chronic illness. Many people live day by day in utter loneliness. Worse yet, others live daily as victims of abuse of the worst kind. When I think about all the horrible things in the world, I feel sad, discouraged and fearful. There has to be goodness and beauty somewhere, right?

Not too long ago I went to my kids' chorale concert. I was really looking forward to this since music, in general, uplifts my soul. But one song, in particular, helped me feel enormously better about the world. The title, in Japanese, is "Si-Si Ni Moja," which means "We are One." 

These beautiful lyrics gave me chills and filled my heart:

♫We all laugh, we all cry, we all feel hunger, we all feel pain, we all love, we all hope, and we all dream.

♫We are one world, one people. And we all breathe the same. A tribe of many languages, a group of many heartaches, fighting for peace among the land.

♫Heja, heja, si-si ni moja. Heja, heja, si-si ni moja.♫

This is exactly how I feel! We're all human and children of God, so why are we trying to label each other and separate each other and blame each other? Another reason this song touched me was because I realized (again) there are many others who feel this way! The world has good people all around me! 

It seemed that in those few minutes of that magical melody the singers and audience were all feeling the same beautiful sentiment. It was one of those precious moments that I treasure. I treasure it not only because my children were on stage sharing their talents and spreading joy through music, but because I felt like my little part of the world in my little town was a little more unified and a little more loving—which is exactly what the world needs.

This isn't my children's chorale, but they're still good!

"Just Get Up and Move and You'll Feel Better" What? I Don't Think So

After visiting my PA, I shuffled my feet home not only feeling tired but just plain discouraged about life. I had so much to get done, but all I could do was lie down on the couch and wish my life would go as planned. I thought about all the times I have tried to make things go just right (which is always) and all the times they just don’t (which is almost always).

Summer is just around the corner. Usually, I am dying for summer to come because then I get to play with my kids a whole lot more and I also don't have to rush people out the door early morning. But, this summer is going to be a bit different. I need to work. (Insert whatever emoji you associate with exhaustion here.) Remember that full-time music teaching job I told you about? Yeah, I still don't feel good about that, but to make up for the loss of money I've decided that freelance editing is a good idea. And it is! But it's going to be tricky in the summer. I know I can squeeze it in, but it's going to take a lot of strategic planning.

You see, I have two different brains during the calendar year. During the nine months of school I have a planning brain, a structured brain, a productive brain. In the summer I have a fun brain, a playful brain, a vacation brain, and a carefree brain. Mixing the two brains? I'm not so sure about that.

So, I continued to lay on the couch trying to sort this out with what I have left of my planning brain.

Have you ever felt overwhelmed with something and then suddenly everything that has ever bothered you comes to the surface? Yep, that's what happened to me this morning. I thought back over the past four years after my youngest left for kindergarten. Have I accomplished anything since then? Then I thought of all the stuff I planned on doing or wanted to do that I didn't get done. Now, I don't know if your list of didn't-do's is as long as mine, but wow, mine was long.

The crazy thing is this state of mind did absolutely NOT motivate me to get up and get at it. Rather, it did the exact opposite. All I wanted to do was lie there and fret. So what did I do? I lay there and fretted. Then I thought, "I'm making things worse by doing nothing. I should get up and do something." But I knew if I did that I would still feel sad and discouraged. I know "they" say if you just get up and move you'll feel better, but that has definitely not been the case with me. I might get something else done, but I won't feel better mentally, which just leads to more discouragement later on.

So I decided I would give myself a mental challenge. I would tell myself everything I DID accomplish in the past four years. Some of this is too personal to say, but here are some other things I came up with:  

• I have taught my children to read, play the piano, ride a bike, and how to hit a baseball. I've taught them about God and the scriptures. I've taught them good manners, how to treat others nicely, and how to do their homework.
• With my family, I have played games, danced, sang, played sports, gone on bike rides, gone on hikes, gone fishing, gone swimming, told stories, cooked, baked, and best of all, I have laughed loads and loads with them.
• I have supported my children with all of their sports teams, martial arts teams, swimming teams, music lessons, choirs, orchestras, and play productions.
• I have overcome a severe mental illness and I have forgiven someone who was very hard to forgive.
•  I have traditionally published a novel!
• I performed as the soprano soloist in my local Messiah concert, (which I practiced so hard for!) I sang with a professional flutist at her concert recital. I directed a college choir. I taught voice lessons. I directed my church's children's choir for four years.
•  I served as a local cub master for my son's cub scout pack.
• I have prepared dinner a thousand times, washed the dishes a thousand times, and folded the laundry a thousand times. Can't forget those things.

It wasn't until after I made this mental list that I started to feel better and I promptly fell asleep. It's been a long time since I took such a good nap. When I woke up I was ready to tackle the day! Never mind that it was noon.

So what's the moral of the story? Well, I think you can find a few in here, but the reminder I needed the most was this: A mental break and a mental pep talk are just as important as nurturing a physical ailment. We would never tell someone who sprained their wrist to just keeping using it. No, we would tell them to STOP using it so it could heal. 

A Mother and a Writer During Spring Break

I've never wanted to be a parent who says, "Stop bothering me, I'm working." Or, "I'm too busy right now." So I have made it my personal motto that I will always be a mother first and a writer second. 

This means when my kids are home I rarely attempt to write or do anything "work related." In fact, sometimes I wonder if my kids think I have magic powers to write books since they hardly ever see me do it. 

Whenever I have tried to write while they are around the scenario usually goes something like this:

I am writing:
I ran around the corner to hide.

"Hey, Mom! Look at this!"

"What? Oh, wow, that's amazing, honey."

I slid behind the door into...

"Hey, Mom, guess what?"

into...

"Mom!"

"Yes?"

"Look how many times I can jump rope! One, two, three, four..."

"Oh, wow. I bet you could make it to five hundred."

"Yeah! Nine, ten, eleven. Oh, man, I messed up."

into the...

"No, look Mom! I can do it!"

"I know you can, honey."

into the closet. Then...

(Different child) "Mom, are you almost done?"

Sigh. "Well, I have about 175 pages to go."

"What?!" 

"But, I have managed to write two sentences in the past fifteen minutes."

"So, you're almost done?"

"No, buddy. I'm not even close."

"Can we go to the park?"

"Sure, just after I finish this thought."

"How long will that take?"

"That depends on..."

(1st child) "Mom, guess how many times I caught the ball at recess yesterday?"

"How many?"

"No, you have to guess!"

"Five."

"No, three."

"Good job."

(2nd child) "Can we go to the park now?"

"Sure. But first, you guys go hulahoop while I finish my thought."

"Okay!"

Then I...

"Mom, look at this!"

Sigh. Click off the computer. "That's amazing, honey. All right, kids. Let's go to the park."


Yep, that's generally how it goes, which is why I don't usually try to write when the kids are home. And honestly, I'm fine with that. I'd rather be involved with my children. It works pretty well for me. I write when my kids are at school and when they are home I am just Mom (in other words, a taxi driver, tutor, piano teacher, cook, mediator, cheerleader, bedtime-enforcer, etc).

However, last week when the kids were on Spring Break, I found myself in a predicament. You see, I had already agreed to participate in a session with my online writing group without remembering my kids were out of school for a whole week. I found myself with 8 segments to review of fellow writers, with one week to complete them, and no good time to do it. One review often takes me a little less than an hour. Usually, this is not a big deal as I can do one or two reviews a day. But the thought of finding eight hours to work while the kids were home seemed impossible. 

I decided I would do one review before they got up and one review after they went to bed. If I did that every day, I would get them all done within the week deadline. 

Well, that worked for the first day. The second day, the kids were up before me and were already watching Wild Kratts on Netflix on the computer. So, I let them watch it on "small screen" while I worked on the other half of the screen. (There is no TV in our house so our computer is used for everything.) This worked pretty well as I'm an expert at tuning out TV shows (minus the occasional, "Mom, watch this! It's hilarious!"). I think I did this the third day too. 

On Thursday, they woke up before me again (obviously, mornings are not my strength), but I felt guilty having them watch TV again so I tried the I'll-just-work-while-they-play idea. Well, I bet you can guess how that worked out from the above scenario. Except for this time it was worse because the kids were arguing and I got mad too. And then I felt guilty over everything—getting upset at the kids, working while the kids were home, and mad that I thought it would ever work in the first place. 

So no, things don't always go as planned. And no, I'm not perfect. But I do my best. The good news is I managed to get up early the next day and get my last two reviews done. 

You might say to me, "just tell your kids you're working from this time to this time and they can't bother you." I know that works for some people, (and I realize that some people have to do that) but not for me. I'm not wired that way. When my kids are home I want to be with them. My books will eventually get written. My kids only grow up once. 

The Power of Words

I think the most difficult thing for me as a writer is dealing with negative feedback and/or the lack of feedback. I'm not sure which one is worse.

I am part of a very active online writing group. We send each other 3,000 words or less of something we have written twice a month. I love my writing group. I receive different and helpful feedback from each one. When I am going through reviews I generally look for feedback that is constructive so I can improve my writing. But I think I focus too much on the negative comments and just gloss over the positive ones. Two days ago I read one particular review that just made me feel like dirt. She said something to the effect of, "Right now, I really don't care about this scene or these characters." Now, I've felt discouraged and embarrassed before, but that comment cut deep.

Now many of you might say, "don’t take it personally," but my writing is personal. It's a big part of who I am. If you gave a speech in church or played an instrument for an audience and someone told you, "that was really boring, I didn't like it," and then told you a plethora of things you did wrong, chances are you would probably take it personally.

Anyway, this wasn't the first time I wanted to give up on the whole idea of being a writer. After all, who is going to miss my writing? Well, even if nobody does, I would miss it. And I couldn't help but notice this quiet little hug around me. It was as if my family in Heaven were whispering to me, "don't give up!"

So I decided to tell my writing group how I was feeling. I didn't spill a whole lot about it, just that I felt discouraged. The leader of the group sent me a message back that simply said, "Brenda! Don't be discouraged! You're a great writer!" And, you know what? That was all the extra push I needed to keep going. That right there shows the power of words.
 

A Perfect Christmas?

This is a story of two women who were trying to make the most of Christmas. Technically, they each were doing the same thing, but which one had the true spirit of Christmas?

Mother Perfection:

A mother hurried along to fill her jars with the perfect Christmas cookie mix to give her neighbors.

"May I help?" her son, Tommy, cried.

"Very well. But please follow my instructions."

So the child filled the first jar with flour, soda, and sugar, as his mother told him to do.

"No, no," she chided. "You're spilling everywhere!"

So the child did his best to clean up the mess and dropped in a layer of candy in the jar.

"No, no!" the mother chided again. "The candy needs to be lined up evenly."

So Tommy made the crooked line of candy a little less so. Now they each cut out some Christmas fabric to cover the jars.

"No! You are not cutting it even! Who wants to look at that?"

Tommy frowned and worked extra hard to cut a perfect square.

"Why are you going so slow?" the mother asked.

Tommy shrugged. Now for the ribbon. Tommy cut the ribbon with precision.

"That is too short."

So Tommy cut out another ribbon and tied a big bow and smiled at his mother. Surely she would be pleased with this.

"Oh, look at that bow! It's all twisted up on itself. It looks ridiculous. You know what? I'm just going to do this myself."

So, the mother filled and decorated the remainder of the jars. They were all perfect. The flour, sugar, and candy were lined up perfectly, the fabric layered on each jar was cut out just right and the bows were tied flawlessly. And then, the mother left the house to deliver her perfect jars and left her ashamed and tearful child at home.

Mother Heart:

A mother hurried along to fill her jars with the perfect Christmas cookie mix to give her neighbors.

"May I help?" her son, Tommy, cried.

"Of course! This will be fun!"

So the child filled the first jar with flour, soda, and sugar.

"You got most of that in the jar. Good job! Let's add a little bit more now."

Now, Tommy lay a new layer of candy in the jar. His mother noticed the lines were crooked, but she knew Tommy had done his best.

"Thank you so much for helping me," she told him.

Now they each cut out some Christmas fabric to cover the jars. Tommy's chubby fingers cut the fabric crooked, but his mother put it on the jar anyway.

"May I cut the ribbon?" Tommy asked.

"Of course, dear," his mother said.

So Tommy cut the ribbon.

"Oops. It doesn't quite fit. What should we do?" his mother asked.

"I'll cut a new one and make it longer," Tommy said.

"Good idea." 

So Tommy cut out another ribbon and tied a big bow and smiled at his mother.

"Oh, look at that bow! It's wonderful!"

Tommy grinned at his mother, very pleased with himself.

"Would you like to help me with the rest of the jars, Tommy?"

"Yes!"

So, Tommy and his mother filled and decorated the remainder of the jars. There was a lot of spilling, the layers were uneven, the fabric was crooked and the bows were big and lopsided. And it took three times longer than it would if Tommy's mother had done it by herself. But Tommy and his mother talked and laughed as they did it together. Tommy even went with his mother to deliver the jars, proudly telling everyone that he had helped make their gift.

When they were all finished, Tommy hugged his mother and she kissed his cheek.

"That was fun! Can we do that again next year?"

So which mother had the true spirit of Christmas? It's obvious, isn't it?

When I do this, I Feel Happier Automatically

I love when the holidays start rolling in. I love the encouragement I feel to be more grateful, more giving, more loving. The Lord blesses us with many things. We probably can't even count them all. And if we try, we will probably miss a lot of blessings that we don't even realize we have. I, for one, like to make a list of things I am grateful for. When I do this, I feel happier automatically.

I am thankful for:

• A family who loves me
• Children who look up to me
• Children who make me laugh and smile, especially when I don't feel like it
• To live in a country with freedom of speech, freedom of religion and freedom to vote
• The founding fathers of this country
• Inspired leaders
• Doctors
• A husband who loves me despite our HUGE differences of opinions
• The ability to create stories and music
• A roof over my head and food to eat
• A car to drive (albeit a very embarrassing car to drive)
• The bright Autumn leaves
• The 20 second walk to my kids' school

The list could go on and on. 

Now, the problem with these lists is we (at least I hope it's us and not just me) tend to make disclaimers on our blessings, i.e, we have to throw in a negative to counteract the positive. For instance, I mentioned that I am grateful for my car, and yet I just had to tell you that I hate it at the same time. Why do we do that? I am not exactly sure, but I do know that the more I focus on being GRATEFUL and finding JOY in things, the less likely I am to be upset or fearful. 

So yes, Thanksgiving isn't just a day for a massive, indulgent meal (although, that's nice too), it's a day to remember the good times and how we got through the bad times. It's a day to look upward, press forward and to bring someone with us. 

It's Right in Front of Us

My grade schooler was a little anxious this morning because he knew he was going to have a substitute. 

"But, Mom," he said, "I am just going to miss my teacher SO much!"

My boy can get pretty attached to people he loves. 

"I hope the substitute is nice."

"I'm sure she will be," I assured him.

As I watched him shut our front gate on his way to school, I said a little prayer that he would feel joy in his heart today. And then I saw him tilt his head back to look up at the falling snow and stick his tongue out to catch some snowflakes. He did this while he was running to the crosswalk. 

Looks like he found joy already. 

How I love what my children help me feel and remember: Joy. 

SLOW DOWN

Do me a favor, please. Sit back and think of those moments when everything was perfect. Come on, there is at least a MOMENT when all was just right.

I had a moment like this just yesterday morning. I was lying in bed completely warm and cozy and relaxed. I could hear the rain outside landing on the roof, the trees, the fence. I thought, "Ah, life is so good."

But then something happened. I had to get out of bed! Now all those warm, fuzzy thoughts vanished.

"Oh, no! What am I am going to do about this? And what about that?"

"How am I going to get that done today?! I don't have time for this!"

"Ah, man, this is all wrong and that didn't go right."

You know what I mean. You've been there. But think about it. Just minutes earlier everything in life was PERFECT. Why the sudden change? After all, not too long ago everything in my life had been pretty much the same.

So I said a prayer—a LONG one. And I must admit I did quite a bit of complaining and crying. And then a thought came to me—a children's song. "Listen, Listen," the song goes. So I decided to do just that. I closed my eyes, focused on breathing deep and LISTENED.

It took a little while, but eventually my mind became CLEAR. My priorities were aligned, my worries lessened, my anxiety calmed, my mistakes forgiven, my determination rekindled.

What was the main lesson I learned from all this? To take time to LIVE IN THE PRESENT MOMENT. You see, I had been focused so much on the future. I was forgetting to enjoy the moment and look at all the good things in life. Now, some people make take this statement and use it as an excuse to be impulsive or make pleasurable, but poor choices. That is no what I mean. What I mean is this: There is wisdom in taking TIME to slow down, BREATHE and LISTEN. After all, a clear mind makes for a more productive and healthy person. 

Share Your Struggles

Why is it so hard to come up with a blog post? 

Perhaps it's because blogs are for promoting stuff, and my stuff isn't on the shelves yet!

Perhaps it's because the things I really want to share are so personal or faith-based. 

What do I want to write about? Well, love stories, of course. But besides that, I want to inspire people, give them hope, give them something to smile about. 

So, this is what I want to tell the world today: If you're feeling down or depressed or have no idea how things are going to work or even if they will work out. Don't give up! Don't give up, and ask for help. There is no shame in needing support. I think I have learned that the hard way. I'm independent! I tell myself. I'm self-sufficient! I'm efficient, I'm strong, I'm resilient. And I am. But, I can't always be that way. 

The truth is, I am stronger when I share my struggles with someone else. I am stronger when I have a shoulder to cry on. There is something about a sincere human connection that binds up wounds and heals broken hearts. Two cords bound together are stronger than one and three cords bound together are stronger than two and so forth. And together they can all withstand the cold. 

Everyone is on a different journey in life and since we are all here together, we might as well lift each other up. That is what so many people have done for me. And I am better for it. 

What About Those Weeds?

I drove into my driveway and groaned at the plethora of weeds that filled my yard. It's just like they say: "A messy house/yard indicates a messy life." Was that really true?

Joys of Babies!

Not long ago, I had the good fortune of being at an ultrasound of a dear friend of mine. How fascinating it was! To see the little legs and feet and hands and ears and nose all snuggling up inside his mother.
It is truly remarkable how life continues to come to earth.

The Love of a Friend

What if we could have a diamond just for being happy and a personal sunshine that brightened our sorrow?

I have both of these in a friend. 

True friends are priceless. They are even better than chocolate. Everyone wants and needs a friend who loves who they are, someone who sees the good in them, someone to share joys, ambitions, successes, struggles and failures with. Someone to laugh with, and someone to cry with. 

Let me tell you about a friend who I think of as both a diamond in my happiness and a sunshine in my sorrow. 

• She is a diamond in my life when she is happy for me with even the smallest of victories. 

• She is a diamond in my life with all her jokes and positive words.

• She is a diamond in my life with all of her acts of kindness, service and thoughtful encouragement.

• She is my sunshine when she listens to my worries with understanding.

• She is my sunshine when she offers advice in difficult situations.

• She is my sunshine when she shares her faith.

This friend of mine just gave me an adorable, little journal. She has one too and we are going to write down something we are grateful for in it every day. What a perfect gift--one that encourages positive thoughts and a healthy spirit. 

No worldly gifts or money or fame could ever compare with a simple diamond-sunshine-friend. How I love you, friend. 

I Am Happy Just the Same

I Am Happy Just the Same

I don't have a lot of money

I don't have a lot of fame.

But with small things in life

I am happy just the same.

I have a son who makes me laugh

A daughter who makes me proud.

Their countless hugs and kisses

And wordless love speak loud.

I have a man who holds me

Close to him at night.

And a pillow for my head

To help me sleep just right.

A kind stranger smiles at me

As we're walking on the street

A friend gives me a book to read

And a yummy treat.

A stranger fixed my dishwasher

Another fixed my car

A friend listens when I'm upset

"I love you how you are."

Life is full of sweet, small things—

Peaches, flowers, music, ice cream.

Dancing, singing, sidewalk chalk,

The silly way a toddler talks.

The sun keeps me warm all day

And the scriptures fill my soul.

The river brings me peace and calm

And God's love makes me whole.

So many little loves of life—

"Diamonds in the rough".

They all bring true happiness.

Oh, how I love the small stuff.

Tiny things mean much to me
'Though to you they seem mundane.
And to that I will admit,

But I am happy just the same.

 


 

Grasshoppers and Dragonflies Make for a Beautiful Day

Do your children ever surprise you with a stroke of genius sometimes?

My 5-year-old boy spontaneously came up with a lovely, simple song the other day while the two of us were throwing rocks into an easy-going river near our home:

♫Watching sticks that float! And watching rocks that sink! Watching grasshoppers and dragonflies! What a beautiful day!♫

Isn't that perfect? I had a wonderful time with him, sitting on the bank of the river among the tall grass and light breeze as we sang songs and threw rocks into the river. We even had a spotted frog friend who dutifully sat by us the entire time!

It was definitely one of those "life is good" days. So I attribute this love note to my son. I love you son, for making my life richer than I could ever hope for.  ♥♥♥

Song of my Heart

Have you ever noticed that it is impossible to be grumpy and sing at the same time? I have. Music lifts my soul, just as writing lifts my spirits.


But, music does it so much more automatically. There is something about a sweet melody that stretches any angst I have right out of me. It works with writing too, but it takes longer.


When our souls dig deep inside themselves, it's amazing to see and hear the beauty that comes out!

It's no wonder that listening to music enhances writing! 

Unrequited Love?

Unrequited love—it's talked about often. It's sad, it's heart-breaking and we can all relate with it one way or another.

Sometimes it's not a romantic love we lose, but a friend. A friend we loved dearly. 

And we lose them in some of the very same ways we lose a romantic love. And often this kind of friendship-love is just as soul-crushing to us. Friends are lost to death or illness. Some friends are even lost because of jealousy or misunderstandings or just a wrong word said.

How do we keep friends? How do we keep friendships alive and free from contamination? How do we keep romantic love blooming and fresh?

It's a difficult question because, although we all do our best, we sometimes fall short; and sometimes our loved ones fall short too.

But, there is One who never falls short in His love and His understanding and His compassion towards us. That is Jesus Christ, our Savior. When we feel as if no one knows our pain, no one understands—He knows. He understands. And He loves us so perfectly that He can help us through any heartache no matter how large, no matter how complicated. And He is the One who can bring back love into our friendships and our relationships. He is the one and only source of true, abiding love.

I am not ashamed to admit that I truly love and adore my Savior!

This is the ultimate love note. And I know He has already read it!

The Greatest Love

Dear God,

I love you for giving me a beautiful world to live in. I love you for giving me a warm house in the winter. I love you for giving me two amazing, beautiful, pure, intuitive children who teach me so much about what is most important in life. I love you for giving me a family who loves me. I love you for putting people in my path that have been angels on earth to me. I love you for the subtle, tender mercies you show to me. I love you for being a caring God. Thank you for your love.


Love,
Your Daughter