Friday 29 May 2015

Love A Girl Who Loves To Travel

Love a girl who travels: She is learning how to be beautiful in her own skin and accept who she is.

She can get ready to go in under 30 minutes, either with unkempt hair or dressed to the nines. She can get dirty; she has stayed in villages and homestays with no showers or electricity, and has partied on rooftops at five-star hotels in Bangkok.
She doesn’t need to wear make-up—or maybe there just wasn’t any time to put it on—but sometimes she likes to because it makes her feel good. She is radiant and loves being outdoors, with or without sun-kissed skin. Perhaps she has scars from bug bites or falling off her scooter, but she is proud of them and wears them like badges of courage.
She has traded in her corporate attire for shorts, hoodies and flip flops; her wardrobe may not be extensive, but she makes it work because she realizes that it’s not the clothes that make the woman. Her best accessories are her personality, her attitude and her sense of adventure—no expensive jewelry can outshine that. She is culture-rich, takes value in the little things and has a tremendous amount of compassion.

Love a girl who travels: She has stepped out of her comfort zone and is learning to be comfortable with the uncomfortable

She has a different calling than others—not better or worse— just different. She has learned to deal with her fear of bugs, snakes, rabid dogs, and rats. She may still scream, but she can handle it. She loves adventure, loves new things and new places. She is ambitious and challenges life. She is truly low maintenance and can carry her own luggage. She has seen remarkable things and wants to see more. She has hilarious stories of misfortune and can tell them with a twinkle in her eye. She has been knocked down both literally and figuratively, but always manages to get her shit back together.

Love a girl who travels: she is intelligent and resourceful.

She hasn’t “thrown away” her college degree, because all of her decisions in her life have led her to exactly thispoint. She may not have a corporate job and she hates when people ask her when she is going to get back to “normal” or the “real world.”
She is creative and resourceful. She will find a way to network, create opportunities and make money to keep her going. She is getting an education she couldn’t get in school, and is following her passion. She loves to share stories, insights or shampoo, just don’t mess with her iPod because it has been with her every day providing a soundtrack for her memories.

Love a girl who travels: She has fears. She has worries. She is out forging her own path in the world, and is afraid, in some way, every day.

She hasn’t turned her back on society or her responsibilities. She has freed herself of certain pressures by making sacrifices in other ways. She has no regrets about this. She is afraid but she refuses to let the fear control her, and instead faces it head on. She is strong but is also in touch with her vulnerability. She has moments when she is envious of those who have chosen a different path, but she also keeps faith  that things will work out the way they’re supposed to.

Love a girl who travels: She knows the value of relationships and of connections.

If she sits next to a stranger, they’ll be sharing a meal in no time. She also knows that most travel friendships have an expiration date, and so she lives in the moment. She is appreciative of time together. She is grateful for her life and all that she has seen. She is an excellent conversationalist. She is always willing to either offer advice based on her experiences, or to take yours. She is both resilient and inspirational to others.

She also knows the value of her relationships at home. She misses those people every day which makes the time she can spend with them so very special. She relishes her Skype and FaceTime with her loved ones, and she knows how to use technology and imagination to remain in the hearts and minds of those she hasn’t seen in ages.  

Love a girl who travels: She is fiercely independent—almost to a fault.

She may have trouble asking for your help, but if you ask for her help, you won’t be disappointed. She knows a genuine offer when she hears it. She is impressed by actions, not by words. She can be stubborn, but once you’re in, you’re in for life.
Love a girl who travels.
Love a girl who has traveled.
Love a girl who wants to travel.
No matter how beautiful the sunsets, how amazing the food, how fascinating the culture or traditions, she knows that the most important things are the memories she has made, and the people she has met along the way.
Love this girl and you will never want to let her go. She may be a bit tough to keep up with at first, but trust me it’s worth it. She hasn’t given up and neither should you.
Love a girl who travels—even if you don’t understand her—because she is following her own path.
Love this girl whether she is your friend, sister, daughter, aunt or love interest.
Love this girl, but don’t ever ask her when she’s getting back to her “normal” life. She has created her own “normal,” and that alone is a truly beautiful thing.

To The One Who Loves Her Next

To the one who loves her next,
She’s terrified of spiders. So when you’re out late with friends and she texts you freaking out because there’s one on her window, please go kill it. She won’t sleep otherwise.
She is a total textbook introvert. She won’t reply for hours and sometimes you won’t see her for a week. You will take this personally. Don’t. She’s simply taking care of herself and she’ll tell you how much she missed you while she was away.
She’ll get very jealous. My god, she gets so jealous. Those blue eyes will turn a deep green. She hates that about herself, and she doesn’t mean to do it. Remember, she loves you. Reassure her that you love her too.
On that topic, she needs constant reassurance. Tell her you love her and mean it. If you can’t do that, leave. She deserves more than that.
There will be nights when she goes out and drinks a little too much. She’ll call you to bring her home. When you do, she’ll try to keep you up all night by tickling you and repeating “I love you and I’m sorry I’m annoying.” She’s not annoying. But make sure she has plenty of water and don’t let her pass out until she drinks it, or she will be miserable in the morning.
She is the most independent woman I know. But she’s so insecure, it still breaks my heart. So when she starts an argument with “you don’t love me.” Do not get upset. Remind her you do and the reasons why. She’ll come around.
The cat comes first. Always. Don’t ever think otherwise.
Make her tea and remember the way she takes her coffee. She will notice.
When she’s having an anxiety attack, wrap her up in your arms and rub her back. Tell her she’s safe and remind her that she has medication if she needs it.
If you cannot treat her like royalty, let someone else. That girl deserves the world.
Losing her is a pain you will never shake. Your world will come crashing down on you and those pieces won’t ever fit the way they used to. Don’t let her go.
She will love you with all she’s got. Please give her the same.

I am begging you to not hurt her. She is golden. Don’t let that shine die out. Give her your all and she’ll return the favor. You will never have to ask the universe for anything ever again.
I promise you that because in my time with her, I never once asked for anything. I had it all. 
Come sleep in my bed and kiss my neck/cheeks and when I start to cry because I am emotionally overwhelmed by how much I feel for you. Just whisper to me that you’ll fucking stay and if I cry even harder.. grab my shaking body, look me in the eyes, and say I’m all you need for all of forever, tell me you love me. Because you’re all I need forever. That night, let’s just get tangled up in each other our first night together. Let the alcohol on my lips pierce through your skin and permanently brand you mine; as your touch leaves burn marks of your fingerprints where you last touched my skin. Let me love you so passionately that you can feel the feelings I was so overwhelmed with consume your soul. Let your eyes roll back, moan my name as I moan yours back. Let’s just melt into one another as we both collapse from the pure adrenaline rush we just gave each other. Let me imprint on you, but let yourself fall into me. Let our love collide and make up the sky to our universe. I want you to be so captivated by the sky above us that I can see the stars in your eyes. I want you to find what we created to be pure beauty, but I want you to notice that I’m too busy looking at you because you’re the real beauty. From the little freckles on your nose, over to the one on your left ear, then all the way down to your matching freckles on your chest, stretching all the way down to your scars on your knees. I am ready to take this journey with you. I am scared, but with you I get a little braver each time. So take your pretty, cold little hand and put it in mine. What do you say?

Timeline of our Love

July
You kiss me in your bed.
You sleep in my arms.
You kiss my cheeks and hug me tightly.
I tell all of my buddies you are probably the one.
And I think maybe you are.
I still do.
August 
I see you multiple times before we start school again.
I drive over at 2 am because I think you might not be there in the morning.
I may find pieces of you scattered across Northwest Ohio.
You say,
“I need you.”
And I throw on shoes and run,
Across any obstacle.
I kiss bleeding knuckles and bruised body parts, 
and I let you collapse into me,
I kiss your forehead and rub your back.
I spend the night,
but we do not have sex.
You kiss me deeply.
Baby, I love you..
September
The seasons change,
So do you.
Everything begins to fall, 
It’s still beautiful and so are you. 
You still look at me like I mean something to you. 
My heart is falling and I’m addicted to your love,
You look so majestic,
Was it all a dream?
“You are my dreams.”
October
I do not talk to anyone. 
I cover myself in blankets and hibernate until people worry. 
I tell them it’s fine, 
But I keep looking at photos of you.
The valley burns,
Smoke and ash,
Like a memory of a time that went bad. 
I wonder what being ash feels like. 
The house could cave in and I would stay still. 
Waiting.
I think of disappearing.
And I know,
that’s extreme and honest and a thought my friend tells me shouldn’t be so loud,
I remind her,
if I don’t tell someone,
maybe I may just.
You found me, 
You saw me. 
That’s what I needed. 
It begins to change.
November
You remembered my birthday,
You were the first. 
My heart ached to see you, 
But you didn’t want to. 
It’s okay. It’s okay. 
I love you, 
Take care of yourself.
December
It is two years since I confided in you about my life.
I put candles around me.
I light them,
immediately blow them out.
Feel a little like that’s what happened to me.
Extinguished.
Without a fucking warning.
January 
I do not tell my buddies you are probably the one because you left.
You’re now broken over another girl.
But I think you still are.
Irrationally.
Undoubtedly.
Now.
In street corners and random things,
I hide from friends,
I run from love.
February 
It’s your birthday, 
I couldn’t forget even if I were comatose. 
You’re older, 
Wiser. 
More beautiful than ever. 
I slowly leave quietly. 
Happy birthday.
March
It’s been awhile since I’ve heard from you. 
You managed to erase me from your memory, 
From your future.
You’re with her,
My heart sinks,
I’m okay though. 
You’re okay.
April
I’m learning to forgive. 
You’re still out chasing your desires,
I wish I were one of them. 
It’s okay, 
I’m not okay. 
I miss you, 
I didn’t ask for this. 
Fuck, 
I crave you,
I’m sorry.
May
You come back, 
Only for a little though. 
You had me, 
You have me still, 
I wish I could see you. 
I’m accepting reality. 
Slow dancer,
Won’t you stay?
You’re slowly dancing away,
Every turn into another direction. 
I’m still hypnotized, 
I can only watch you leave now.
I can’t move,
You’re stunning.
I am beginning to like her.
But not the way I felt for you.
I anonymously message you.
But I remind myself this is good.
This is different.
That not all things start in combustion,
some flames are small to start.
We are the kindling right now and maybe that’s okay.
But she’s still not you.
So while things still sit without labels,
I meet another girl.
She looks at me the way you did that night I wore the plaid dress shirt.
I want to ask her if she knows
the way she is looking at me
and that it smells like future and potential and I could kiss her. 
I kiss her in her house.
June
The girl I thought I liked,
slowly
let the fire build up with every touch,
But I tell her it isn’t really working.
I still love you,
I’m still in love. 
You’re not coming back. 
I wish I could see that,
But I hope that’s not the case.
I remember that you once said I would look good holding a baby,
which is a fucking weird thing to say to someone like me.
But my heart swelled,
I keep hearing you say it.
Over
and over.
It is my Lullaby
when I cannot sleep.
I’ve been thinking too much,
Of you loving me.
July 2015
I tell my best friend how uninterested I am in sex. 
I am fighting missing you again,
but then,
there you are.
You appear and everything feels like July 2014.
You are still in my pillowcase,
in the stands of my hair,
a ghost hanging out in my text messages.
I read them until I am nauseated with myself.
You are still my Fourth of July firework. 
All this time.
It’s still you.
It will always,
always
be you.

Tuesday 26 May 2015

10 Ways To Say 'I LOVE YOU' Without Actually Saying It

Sometimes out of all the words in the English dictionary, the compilation of these these three words becomes the hardest to say. We always look for ways to make our 'special someone' feel 'special'. We Google on the ways and methods to make them smile.

Here are a few fail-proof ways of making your 'The One' happy and loved:


  •  Letters and love notes written in unsuspecting ways and places. Chalk on the sidewalk. Written in sand and snow. Post it notes on the car windshield. Large poster board taped to the brick wall by the coffee shop frequented every morning. Tucked in the coat pocket or backpack or lunch box. Lipstick on the mirror. Sharpie on the wall and sheets, because some things deserve to be permanent.
  • Give them Time. But not just any Time. A time full of your attention, love and without distractions of your cellphones etc.
  • Be present. Know what is going on with the your partner. Observe.
    We check in with each other daily. We observe each other. We notice each others moods. We spend the evenings together sometimes doing something that needs to be done, sometimes not. We look forward to each other coming home at the end of the day.
    We share the same space when we can. We look forward to reuniting at the end of the day. Upon falling asleep, I take a deep breath and exhale and release, knowing that we are together and whatever the day brought, I am safe, secure and loved.
  • Go to bed at the same time as your partner. Wake up at the same time, too.
    Of course, this doesn’t happen every night, or every morning. But, when it does, it feels good. Just this morning, I woke up as my husband was getting ready to head to work, even though I had the time this morning to catch another hour of sleep.
    He had a big day scheduled and the 30 minutes together this morning allowed me an opportunity to offer support, a kiss, and a good-bye and good luck. I was already with him as he journeyed into his day. And I did that for him because I knew he needed and wanted it.
  • Do something helpful for your partner that is not typical for you.
    It’s natural to establish roles in our homes without even discussing them. The one who cooks—cooks. The one who cleans—cleans. The one who takes out garbage—takes out the garbage. We tend to stick with our duties, not necessarily questioning why it’s our role. Do an extra task that is typically the other person’s task. I love when my husband cooks, as that is typically my job, and I think he enjoys when I put an extra load of his laundry in, as he typically does his own—20 years in.



Wednesday 20 May 2015

You say I never needed you, But you were wrong.

You say I never needed you,
But you were wrong.
I’ve always needed you,
just not the way you want me to.
I never needed you to fight my battles for me,
I can do that on my own.
But I do need to know that you will always be on my side,
that I have your trust and support.

I never needed jewels and gold,
I live a simple life and only want for simple things.
But I do need assurance and comfort,
not of finance but of heart, that I am good enough.

I never needed to be constantly around you and wanting your every attention,
I am a big girl and can get by on my own very well,
But I do need to know that I have a place by you side, even when I am not there.

I never needed you to love me like I love you,
I am wise enough to understand not all love are requited,
But I need you to not hurt me,
though we both know that if that happens all I can do is to only continue loving you.

I never needed your heart,
for a heart should never be so easily given away,
But I need your hand,
A warm touch, a gentle embrace, to let me understand that I am safe in your arms.

I never needed your kisses,
They are superficial, and though they feel good they never convey as much as I wanted to.
But I needed your words,
Words in which I hear and can recall in dark times, giving me reason to stand up once again.

I never needed a marriage,
for marriage can be broken and I know how you always hated to be tied down,
But I needed a bond between us,
Something that is proof that this is real and not just a fabric of my imagination.

I never needed a castle,
It is big and cold and I get lost easily,
But I need a home,
A place filled with love that can always go back to.

I never needed to be protected,
I am not made of glass and I can look after myself,
But I need to be embraced,
To know there’s a place I can go to when I am vulnerable.

So yes, I do not need you the way you wanted me to,
But for the ways I needed you, more often than not, you weren’t there,
Which is why I am saying goodbye now,
Before this last piece of fragile heart shatters too…

Farewell my love, I hope that you can find that someone you need,
and I hope that in passing time, my heart will slowly piece itself back together,
When that time comes, maybe then we can risk seeing each other again,
with hope that the feeling of wanting to cry, to hurt, to embrace and to love you will be gone,
and then, truly then, will we be free of each other…

Until then,
Goodbye.”