All my love

I want the people I love to experience all the good things I have and as little of the bad as possible.

Children! The best parts of my life have been with children. Watching them grow. Holding them. Playing with them. Seeing them happy and content. Being tickled by their orneriness.

They don't have to be blood of my blood, or bone of my bone. They only have to touch a piece of my heart and I am filled.

Exploring! This world is filled with so many unimaginable places. Some because nature made it so and some because experiences made it so. Both need to be savored.

Reading! Without books my life would have so many fewer dimensions. Where would all those vicarious experiences occur? What would feed my mind? Who would care for me when I am all alone?

Small blessings! Things like realizing how fortunate I am to be able to pay my bills.  To understand how good it is to have a place to call home. To be able to eat good food and not be hungry.

Friends. And these can be children, family, family of the heart, and just friends who will share a cup of coffee or tea. To have someone who cares makes life tolerable in the worst of times and glorious in the best.

Resiliency. Living through the worst, thinking you cannot bear it, and deep down knowing that nothing lasts forever. The sun will shine again. The pain will lessen over time. Just hang in there.

I don't know that these things are in order of importance, but I do know they are important.