“Listen as I promise, you deserve everything, especially to love again.”

You spend your whole life convincing yourself you are a chapter worth following, and then someone comes along and doesn’t want to read the ending, and suddenly the whole story falls apart.

Some moments have to happen so they may shape you, teach you, undo you, and remake you.

Be kind to yourself, the way you would be to someone you love.

The aches in my arms still surprise me, even years after letting you go.

When you take a lover who uncovers all your flaws, listens to the very essence of who you are and embraces you rather than judges you, hold on to this love for a lifetime, as you will never find a love quite as pure.

I think if you let me, I’d build an observatory just to show you that all the stars in the universe will never shine as brightly as you.

Then I am reminded that life will continue on, regardless of whether I choose to board the train or stay on the platform.

By existing you are planting softness in soil that has turned hard. There is no need to surrender your existence. You are doing just fine by even existing at all.

I’ve been thinking about our forever, how memories fade but the light in our eyes stays.

I am no more the person that you left than you are the person I miss.

You achieve all your dreams by facing your fears. By experiencing the doubt and the disbelief and choosing to carry on anyway.

So I’ll stand here for you In the wind and the rain And I’ll be the lighthouse you need.

The tragedy of what could have been is nearly as crippling as what once was but can never be again.

I have been a little off balance since the day I met you. This is because I had never known what it is like to be perfectly aligned.

Love makes us both happy and sad and there is not a soul alive that has been able to understand why.

Is that why you play the music so loud? A beat to drown out the thoughts, sound so high you cannot think, lyrics so close to home you don’t even blink.

But I can’t listen to music too often. It affects your nerves, makes you want to say stupid, nice things, and stroke the heads of people who could create such beauty while living in this vile hell.

When people express opinions that differ from yours, take it as a chance to grow. Seek to understand over being understood. Be curious, not defensive. The only way to disarm another human being is by listening.

Over time, I have come to believe that ‘brave’ does not mean what we think it does. It does not mean ‘being afraid and doing it anyway.’ Nope. Brave means listening to the still small voice inside and doing as it says. Regardless of what the rest of the world is saying.

If God had wanted us to talk more than listen, he would have given us two mouths rather than two ears.

Don’t be afraid to lose. Listen. And always invest in yourself.

I don’t know what type of music my son will want. By the time he starts listening to music, really, at like 15, 16, I’ll probably have 10 albums out by that time.

Listen for the instruction, instead of begging for the direction.

Sitting alone, listening to the sound of your breath, the beating of your heart is a reminder that you are sacred and blessed.