If they want you

if they want you,

they will not lose you 

and that is how it works.

when someone loves you

they will drink the ocean

just to make sure 

you do not drown.

~rm.drake

Destiny

God says, "You weren't rejected, I hid your value from them because they were not assigned to your destiny."

You deserve

You deserve to be chosen instead of considered. When you become merely an option for someone, that is not someone who will choose you constantly, undoubtedly. Remember, you are worth being someone's constant.

Don't feel stupid

Don't ever feel stupid for loving someone

who turned out to be everything they

promised they would never be. But be proud

that you still believe in the goodness of people,

because that is rare. Don't let it harden you. 

Learn the lesson, but keep that soft heart.

~Stephanie Bennett-Henry

Never chase

You will never have to chase

somebody who is meant

to be with you, because they

won't run.

They will stay and stay and stay.

~Mark Anthony Poet

This time

 I hope this time when you

see the signs, you don't

ignore them. Hope this time

when you see the lack of 

effort, you don't force it.

You pick up and go.

~poetic_style

Warm yourself

and when someone shows you

how cold they can be,

don't you dare use your heart

to break through their ice;

warm yourself.

~Stephanie Bennett-Henry

Serve her your heart

 If you cannot serve her your heart,

do not set a table of hope for her.

Do not serve her lies and

feed her false promises.

~Pierre Alex Jeanty

When no one was looking

and even when no one

was looking, I was still kind,

when there was no proof,

I was still good.

I do everything with

all of my heart, even when

my heart is invisible.

~Stephanie Bennett-Henry

Two different things

 "To love" and "to make someone feel loved" are two different things.

"To love" is your decision to be open. To engage, write, accept, and give chance to experiences, whether they may be good or bad. It is for yourself because in many ways, to love means to live.

"To make someone feel loved" is your actions to give, convey your emotions, and your efforts to deliver the message. It is for the person you love, because sometimes there is love - but unfelt.

~Jerico Silvers

Rare souls

If you come across

one of the rare souls

who sees the war

in your eyes

and does not flinch,

hold them close,

hold them forever.

~Stephanie Bennett-Henry

What remains

From The HR Diary

It took me a long time to realize that not everything in life 

is meant to be a beautiful story.

Not every person we feel something deep and moving with is

meant to make a home within us, is meant to be a forever.

Sometimes, people come into our lives to teach us how to love;

and sometimes people come into our lives to teach us how

not to love.

How not to settle, how not to shrink ourselves ever again.

Yes, sometimes people leave - but that's okay,

because their lessons always stay, and that is what matters.

That is what remains...

~Biana Sparacino

Take back

Take back control of your heart.

Stop leaving it in hands that

aren't going to care for it, hands

that won't nurture it, hands that

only know how to use it. Take your 

heart back.

~Pierre Jeanty

What a man owns

The world asks,

"What does a man own?"

Christ asks,

"How does he use it?"

~Andrew Murray

The wolf cries girl

SOMETIMES THE WOLF

CRIES GIRL

by srwpoetry

Sometimes the hero stumbles

and falls right off the page.

Sometimes the princess

rolls her eyes and says,

"I don't want to be saved."

Sometimes the dragon needs rescuing

and the villain aches to be helped.

Sometimes, in the darkness,

the lost boy finds himself.

Sometimes the prince is cunning

and not at all who he seemed.

Sometimes the witch's kindness shows

it's she who deserves to be queen.

Sometimes we shouldn't define people

based on somebody else's point of view -

just because it's what we've been told

doesn't make it true.

Real love

One of the first signs of

real love is the moment

you realise they are trying

their very best to understand you.

~Jonathan Carroll 

True romance

true romance

is simply being

in the moment

with somebody 

who wants

to be there,

more than

anywhere else.

~Mark Anthony

Enforcing boundaries

Nothing exposes a 

toxic, dysfunctional,

unstable person

quicker than enforcing

your boundaries.

@Narcissistic_Abuse_Lifecoach

Culture

From Flying Free

Dear wife

It's not culture.

Ultimately, he does what 

he does because he can.

"Culture" is just another

excuse to remain toxic,

entitled, immature, and

corrosive.

~Ngina Otiende

Don't have

 God is not 

limited by what

you don't have.

Follow

 by Anthony Caputi

World: "Follow your heart."

Jesus: "Follow me."

World: "Believe in yourself."

Jesus: "Believe in me."

World: "Discover yourself."

Jesus: "Deny yourself."

World: "Be true to you."

Jesus: "Be true to me."

Abundance

 Your disappointment 

season has come to

an end. Your drought

will be overcome with

an abundance of rain.

Relying on God

Relying on God has

to begin all over

again every day as 

if nothing had yet

been done.

~C.S. Lewis

Hardest good-byes

 The hardest good-byes

are the ones you don't see

coming. The ones you

don't plan. Or could never

imagine happening.

~R.M. Drake

Our perfect happiness

 Can't wait to see you again, Max...

"I think God will have prepared everything for our perfect happiness.

If it takes my dog being there (in 

Heaven), I believe he'll be there."

~Rev. Billy Graham, often called "America's Pastor"

Wherever we are

They whom we love and

lose are no longer where

they were before.

They are now

wherever we are.

~St. John Chrysostom

Love me still

 LOVE ME STILL

If you wish to love me still,

when I leave,

you can,

by loving others,

by giving new love,

by not losing hope,

by still seeing joy,

by living your life like it cries to be lived,

by letting go when the natural order demands it,

by being at peace with the circle of time.

If you wish to love me still,

when I leave,

you can,

by loving life,

by loving all that is life,

by loving yourself most of all,

the way that I loved you.

For now that I cannot, you must.

Love yourself

and you will love me still.

Love your life

and your will love me still.

~Donna Ashworth

Unimportant

 If you were made to feel

unimportant as a child,

there's a good chance this is

a feeling that gets triggered

often for you as an adult-

even in situations that have

nothing to do with your

importance AND with people

who truly do value you.

~Dr. Leah Katz

Setting boundaries

 From Flying Free

The only people who get upset when you set boundaries

are those who benefitted from you having none.

Running from you

He's not running from you, babe, he's running from himself.

Let him go. It's not your responsibility to save him.

~Stephanie Bennett-Henry

Your shoes

I said your hair looked amazing but what I really wanted to say was...

"Your energy sparks a little but of something in mine, your smile warms my heart, and when you laugh, I just have to laugh too, it's like a bubbling stream of fresh water running through my soul. I feel like the sun is shining on me when you're near and when I leave you, sad as it is, I feel like I've been charged, plugged into the mains for an infusion of fizz and life."

But I said, "I love your shoes instead."

I hope you heard, what I really meant.

~Donna Ashworth

(posted by Nona. When I commented that I love Donna Ashworth, she replied I love your shoes)

Don't take it personally

 From 360 degrees of inspiration

"Don't take it personally"

That is easier said than done but...

"When you let it get personal, the cost becomes personal too. You're opening your own heart here. Are you sure you want to do that?"

~Michael Marshall Smith

When we get sideswiped by nasty words (seemingly out of the blue) we have to look at the context~

More often than not, the tongue lashing was not meant for us, it was a culmination (a series of emotions) of someone's bad day and we just happened to be the target.

The test of our resolve is to understand this. It doesn't make it right or excuse poor behavior, it happens. We have all done this, experienced it, and felt the hurt.

Now we decide - do we let it eat at our ego or send them some love.

I choose the latter.

They obviously need it.

~Debbie Lynn

Number of hours

The number 

of hours

we have

together is

actually not

so large.

Please linger

near the 

door uncomfortably

instead of 

just leaving.

Please forget

your scarf

in my 

life and

come back

later for

it.

~Mikko Harvey

See yourself

You don't see yourself the way other people do, but I wish you could.

The view is breathtaking, with your heart in your eyes and the way

you carry the whole world on your shoulders like it has never been heavy.

~Stephanie Bennett-Henry

Slight chance

If there's even a slight chance at getting something that will make you happy, RISK IT.

Life's too short and happiness is too rare.

~A.R. Lucas

Anger

Anger is the most reliable

signal telling you that your

boundaries are being crossed.

Stop trying to be angry.

Start asking yourself what

your anger's saying to you.

~Robin Clark

The problem

 From Glow of the Heart

The problem is you will get used to their silence, you will miss things happening in their day and they will miss them in yours, but the real problem is it won't be an awkward thing, you will want to scream out you miss them, you will want to blame them for taking a step away from you but you are terrified to hurt them, so you will try harder and harder to keep them, to ignore the facts even without meaning it, you no longer shape a priority in their days, you will find hundreds of excuses, you will even blame yourself, till that moment you know you are approaching, that moment that scares you the most from yourself, that moment you will stop trying, you will stop missing them that much, you will stop feeling the void they left, you will get used that they are no longer here and life will go on, with a bruise in the heart and an ache in the soul but it will go on.

~Yasmine Lasheen

Saying less

 Posted by Nona. I appreciated this because I feel guilty sometimes about being "quiet".

Saying less is incredibly helpful.

Every thought is not valuable.

Every feeling does not need to be voiced.

What is often best is slowing down

to spend time developing a clearer and more

informed perspective. Ego rushes

and reacts, but peace moves

intentionally and gently.

~Yung Pueblo

Miss me more

DON'T MISS ME MORE

Don't miss  me more than once a day,

For life is moving fast.

Don't wish all of your time away,

Dreaming of the past.

Don't waste the moment looking at,

The things I left behind me.

I'm not within those walls or boxes

The heart is where you'll find me.

Don't dread to say my name, sweet one,

Don't fear the wrath of sadness.

Just take the love you had for me,

And turn it into gladness.

Don't worry when my birthday comes

Don't feel me missing more.

I'm filled with love you're sending me,

Just as I was before.

Some days your anger will rush out,

Your tears will find their way.

To me, wherever I am then.

I'll soothe them all away.

When I am gone don't miss me more,

Than once, or twice a day.

There's so much life to live, my love.

I'm with you, all the way.

~Donna Ashworth

Strength

What is strength?

Strength is forgiving people that don't even feel sorry for their action.

Strength is putting on a smile on your face when you want to cry a river.

Strength is not hurting those who hurt you.

Strength is forgiving others.

~averstu.com

All that is gold

 All that is gold does not glitter,

not all those who wander are lost; the old

that is strong does not wither, deep roots

are not reached by the frost. From the

ashes a fire shall be woken, a light from

the shadows shall spring; renewed shall

be blade that was broken, the crownless

again shall be king.

~J.R.R. Tolkien

Refusals

Sometimes God's refusals are His mercy.

~Elisabeth Elliot

Sunny smile

It was only a sunny smile,

and little it cost in the 

giving,

but like morning light

it scattered the night

and made the day worth

living.

~F. Scott Fitzgerald

Never said

 God never said

the weapons

wouldn't form,

He said they

wouldn't prosper.

Many lives

I feel as though I have lived

many lives, experienced the

heights and depths of each

and like the waves of the

ocean, never known rest.

Throughout the years,

I looked always for the

unusual, for the wonderful,

for the mysteries at the

heart of life.

~Leni Riefenstahl

Be yourself

To be yourself in a world that

is constantly trying to make

you something else, is the

greatest accomplishment.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Depth

It is not the length of life,

but the depth.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Walk inside

 You either walk inside

your story and own it,

or you stand outside your

story and hustle for

your worthiness.

~Brene Brown

Silence

 Posted by Nona from Indigenous Civilization

We Indians know about silence. We are not afraid of it. In face, for us, silence is more powerful than words. Our elders were trained in the ways of silence, and they handed over this knowledge to us. Observe, listen, and then act, they would tell us. That was the manner of living.

With you, it is just the opposite. You learn by talking. You reward the children that talk the most at school. In your parties, you all try to talk at the same time. In your work, you are always having meetings in which everybody interrupts everybody and all talk five, ten or a hundred times. And you call that "solving a problem". When you are in a room and there is silence, you get nervous. You must fill the space with sounds. So you talk compulsorily, even before you know what you are going to say.

White people love to discuss. They don't even allow the other person to finish a sentence. They always interrupt. For us Indians, this looks like bad manners or even stupidity. If you start talking, I'm not going to interrupt you. I will listen. Maybe I'll stop listening if I don't like what you are saying, but I won't interrupt you.

When you finish speaking, I'll make up my mind about what you said, but I will not tell you I don't agree unless it is important. Otherwise, I'll just keep quiet and I'll go away. You have told me all I need to know. There is no more to be said. But this is not enough for the majority of white people.

People should regard their words as seeds. They should sow them, and then allow them to grow in silence. Our elders taught us that the earth is always talking to us, but we should keep silent in order to hear her.

There are many voices besides ours. Many voices...

~Ella Deloria

Will make sense

This thought came in my head this weekend too which I was thankful for after what happened with Max:

I don't know if Pastor Ty touched on this concept or if I read something online, but the idea of it was that God is the ultimate counsel. There is no one above Him. When we stand before Him someday and ask Him a question, His answer will always make PERFECT sense. Who is above Him to dispute that? NO ONE and certainly not us. 

That is reassuring, but what is also reassuring is that we don't have to wait until "that day" to get the answers to our questions about why this or why that. If we know already that the answer He gives us will make perfect sense no matter what it is, we can rest in that NOW. We can have that peace NOW. We can know that our Father's heart always wants the best for us and that provides tremendous peace. 

Thank you Lord for that. 

Keep saying yes (Max)

This phrase entered my head this weekend after thinking about all the happened with Max: 

Keep Saying Yes

When the kids asked me if we could watch essentially my ex's dog (whom he acquired with his ex-girlfriend), I'm sure my first thought was, "Why would I do this?" I had met Max before on several occasions and I found him obnoxious and ill-behaved. I never liked dogs anyway, so why I would I welcome another one into my home (especially one who had accidents regularly when he got "excited") not to mention not really wanting to help my ex out at all.

I agreed, and we took him for a week or so in September. He was whiny and clingy. We were all used to our own space and peace and he was basically an interruption to that. I was anxious for the week to be over. 

We were asked again to watch him after Thanksgiving for month or so until Christmas. I agreed to that again. The time went much better as we all got used to each other and it was a little hard to give him back after that for the week that my ex was back in the country before leaving again for 4 months.

When he came back to us the third time, it was pretty much decided that we weren't giving him back. He worked his way into all of our hearts and established his position as a permanent member of our family. The amount of love this dog gave to us all was overwhelming which is a HUGE understatement. 

There are so many things I could say about Max. He was so fun and cuddly to sleep with. He would sometimes let me pull him close but sometimes wanted his space at the end of the bed or under my covers when I got my turn to sleep with him when Hope wasn't home. He was the first dog I ever (or ever wanted to) kiss directly on his little lips. Sometimes I was afraid I was obsessing over him and giving him too much love, but he gave us back WAY more. I also loved all of his different acrobatic-like sleeping positions. There was always a new one I hadn't seen before. 

He always wanted to sit in my chair with me - either right in front with his paws on the arm of the chair so I had to move my book or behind me with half of his body on my shoulders and half on the chair back so when I got up he would slide down the chair. I would put off getting up out of my chair sometimes because I would feel bad about disturbing him. 

I loved our walkies. I used to go for a lot of walks during Covid (like everyone else) but I have bad memories of those sometimes because what I was going through at the time (and right after the divorce with anxiety issues, etc.). I thought I would be motivated to start taking walks again if I had the distraction of Max and it worked. We would go in spurts when weather permitted and made our way around various neighborhood blocks. I started going at night recently around the immediate block which I felt more comfortable doing so he could be on the farthest end of his retractable leash and not get in the way of other walkers and their dogs. I will miss those walks.

Max was the life and love of our home. We all loved him, doted on him, pointed out cute things he did, played with him and laughed at him. We decided to bring him Up North with us and we had a blast. He was so good and he surprised us by running into the lake one day, digging furiously in the sand, etc. He was great in the car there and back and I am so glad we have that memory with him. 

We loved him through his seizures and helped him find a way to control them, even though that may have been the source of his demise since we never knew why he was having them. He was Hope's constant companion. I always say that Hope came first, Collin came second and I came in third with him, but I was happy with that. When there is that much love flowing, third is still a very good place to be in.

He really enjoyed chewing his "bonies" and especially wanted you to hold the bonie for him so he could go at it more. (I stepped on so many of his bonies on the floor - almost hurt as much as stepping on a Lego). He loved to play tug-of-war with his toys (like his rings) and get closer and closer to your hand to "accidentally" bite it. When he was under my covers he would play-bite harder through the covers for some reason than my bare hand. I had to remind him not to do that. He also chewed on a lot of my underwear and it makes me laugh to see the bite marks. One time a pair I had on was hanging on by a literal thread; so much so when I pulled it up after using the bathroom, they tore in two and I kept pulling them up. 

He loved to get into the trash, recycling, etc., so we quickly learned that doors had to be closed, recycling had to be up, trash lids secured, etc., even pop cans. He also liked to chew hard plastic cups, etc. and cracked many. He surprised us all when he got into Collin's cannabis gummies and went on the trip of his life. Thankfully he made it through that. That's how we found the emergency animal hospital where he would spend his last days. 

There are so many memories of our year together. I pray that I remember everything. 

Max, we will never understand (until we're in Heaven) why your time with us was so short. None of us have ever been so sad since we lost Hayden. You are and always will be the BEST.DOG.EVER. Thank you for all of the memories, thank you for all of the love. We are forever better for having known you.

Moral of this story:  KEEP. SAYING. YES.

Make peace

 by Donna Ashworth

MAKE PEACE WITH YOUR BODY    

Make peace with your body today my friend,

for it has toiled many years just to keep you alive.

It has grown, weathered virus and disease,

healed countless wounds and fought many unseen battles,

to keep your soul intact for its journey through this life.

Yes it has changed but it has been changing since the day 

you were born.

And it will continue to change until the day you die.

Make peace with this.

Striving against this change, is like trying to blow away the

wind. Futile, pointless, misery-making.

Your body has served you well and done so with your daily

hate and disapproval.

It has suffered years of daily, hourly negativity, pulsing its

way from your brain to your cells...

Not good enough, not attractive enough, not perfect.

And every day you thought it wasn't perfect, it really, truly

was.

It was keeping you alive, supporting your rash decisions,

counteracting your foolish mistakes, doing everything in its

power to stay in the game.

For you.

Make peace with your body today, my friend, say your

apologies, right your wrongs and move on with

appreciation.

You are blessed.

Look around you, not everyone is so blessed.

Not every one is breathing, walking, thriving.

And whilst you are looking around, see that nobody is

perfect. The way a body looks, says nothing about its

strength, its longevity, its endurance.

This is not a rehearsal, this is your one shot at a life well-lived.

Make it count.

Where she's been

You must understand where she's been and what she's endured.

She has spent years in survival mode and that is trauma to the soul.

Sometimes you have to learn all over again that the quiet is the peace

and not a prelude to war.

~JmStorm

Disrespect yourself

You disrespect yourself when you beg someone for bare minimum things like love, attention,

affection, support, reciprocation, etc. Don't do that shxx again.

The bricks

 From @PeacefulMindPeacefulLife

If you gotta tell

them to help carry

the bricks, they

aren't the ones to

build with.

Nothing in return

 Every now and then, a person with no agenda,

no ulterior motive, and no self-interest will take

pleasure in helping you to succeed, grow, and

live your purpose. This person will operate

in love, will seek no praise, and 

will want nothing in

return.

This person is a gift.

All over again

Relying on God has

to begin all over

again every day as

if nothing had yet

been done.

~C.S. Lewis

As cold

You describe your heart

As cold

But in reality

There is no cold

Just a lack of heat

And I think this feeling

You feel

Is the result of

Too much love being put out

And not enough love

Being given back,

And all the blankets

In the world

Could not cure you

But the arms of one lover

Wrapped tightly around your waist

Could heat your heart enough

To burst out of your chest

And bring the earth

To flames

Set us free

From Flying Free

We had a faith that made us stay in our abusive relationship.

We needed a faith that would set us free.

Kind to yourself

Be kind to yourself.

Stay out of the circle of toxicity with people,

if they offend you, live your life.

Be proud of your life.

~Anthony Hopkins

Great career

I asked a wise man, "Tell me sir, in which field could I make a great career?"

He said with a smile, "Be a good human being. 

There is a lot of opportunity in this area,

and very little competition."

Watergate

 I know the resurrection is a fact, and

Watergate proved it to me. How?

Because 12 men testified they had

seen Jesus raised from the dead, then

they proclaimed the truth for 40

years, never once denying it. Every

one was beaten, tortured, atoned and

put in prison. They would not have

endured that if it weren't true.

Watergate embroiled 12 of the most

powerful men in the world - and they

couldn't keep a lie for three weeks.

You're telling me 12 apostles could

keep a lie for 40 years? Absolutely

impossible.

~Charles Colson

Nothing can break me

There's Nothing Anyone Can Do Now to Break Me

I guess it's the result of being broken over and over again

when you have survived that kind of heartbreak

you become a force to be reckoned with

it's not that I have hardened my heart

no, it's quite the opposite

it is that I've sat with

the pain long enough

to turn it into p o w e r

~Sharyn Marsh, Leave the Wild

Disrespect

 When someone 

disrespects you, beware of

the impulse to win their

respect. For disrespect is

not a valuation of your

worth, but a signal 

of their character.

~Brendon Burchard

Trust

 From Flying Free

Trust is earned.

It is not

something to be

demanded.

~Henry Cloud

Sake of your sanity

It's for the sake of your sanity that you draw necessary boundaries.

It's for the sake of stability that you stay consistent with those boundaries.

~Lysa Terkeurst

10,000 things

God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them.

~John Piper

Another year

 This past year is another year of my Lord's faithfulness and love.   ~Charles Spurgeon

Intercession

 Elisabeth Elliot ~

Intercession is the hardest work in the world--the giving of one's self, time, strength, energy, and attention to the needs of others in a way that no one but God sees, no one but God will do anything about, and no one but God will ever reward you for.

See Matt. 6:6

But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father, who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

Save himself

As long as a man 

thinks that he

can save himself

he remains lost.

~Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Overthinker

 Trust the overthinker who

tells you they love you. They

have, most assuredly, though

of every reason not to.

LK Pilgrim

Let him go

 From The Soul Journey with Sarah Moussa

And she let him go

Not in anger

Not of bad intentions

It was freedom she seeked

Not from the man she loved

But from pain

So she released him

In hopes to never feel

This way again

@Debra McLain

Thank you

 thank you

for breaking

me to the 

point

where I 

finally learned

to value myself.

Sweet intentions

 Just a reminder 

that you don't have to

make resolutions.

Or huge decisions.

Or big proclamations.

You can just set

some sweet intentions

and take each day

as it comes.

~Victoria Erickson

Author, Rhythms & Roads

Throw stones

 It's hard to throw 

stones if you're busy

washing feet.

Walk away

 From My Hope for Tomorrow

Walk Away

What must you do when someone is not ready to be with you?

You walk away. Love yourself enough to walk away from anyone who does not know your worth. Believe me, one day you will meet someone who will drink up every ounce of your magnificence, making you wonder what you were doing wasting your time with someone who had no idea what you truly deserved. Walk away from anyone who is unsure about you, no matter how right you think it feels. Because at the end of it, if they were so right for you then you would not be losing sleep over why you both are not together.