Love Thyself Like No Other

To My Daughters:

I will do my best to love you,
but in the end, no one will know how to love you like you.
Because I am your parent and you are my child
my best intentions will by your mind translate into false expectations
and an inner dialogue I would never wish upon you

And it will follow you, that dialogue, into every romantic relationship
but in the end, no one will know how to love you like you
You will play silly games, looking for another to fulfill you
all the while blinded to the ways you are loved because you know what
you need, but you won't give it to yourself

And you will grow frustrated, tempting to believe that you are unlovable
but in the end, no one will know how to love you like you
Then you will remember what I told you and correct that inner voice
 to sound like a mother, a sister, a best friend and a lover
 creating compassion within and opening your eyes to the self-love you've been missing


And one day, you will finally realize the Truth
That no one will love you like I love you

Never Water a Weed

My 7-year-old daughter was the inspiration for me to re-enter the blogosphere today. Until now, I've been only thinking about it and had it filed the 'action' part with the rest of the "some days" of my mind. But the truth is, I've been agonizing over the desire to share my thoughts in a way that inspires people and elicits positive connections with others. But today is the day... I'm back!

So why "Never Water a Weed"? This is where my daughter comes in. Earlier this evening, she and I were having a conversation about her taking the initiative to play soccer with a bunch of boys at recess today. I was glad to hear that she had taken a chance to do so and was anticipating a victorious ending; which was right about when she told me she stopped playing because one particular boy was laughing at her.

Her look indicated she knew what was coming next... one of my motivational talks, which for her is like cleaning her room; a painful process to start, but once it's done she always feels better.

"So you stopped playing because of that?" I responded. "You let that person take your joy away... You're going to let someone else make you shrink inside? Baby girl, you gave all your power away. So what are you going to do tomorrow?"

"Play soccer," she says with a smile.

"And laugh back if someone laughs at you again," I add.

"Yeah, and then I'll just say to him –"

That's when I cut her off. "Baby, never water a weed. You know what happens when you water a weed, don't you?"

"It grows big," she says, as she pantomimes a weed growing.

"And how easy is it to pull a weed out when it's big like that?" I ask.

In her dramatic 7-year-old voice she proclaims,"It's NOT!"

And in proper form, our philosophical discussion ended with her having more bounce in her step and I, wandering away while pondering what I had just said.

Today I realized I have a few weeds of my own I need to stop watering. There has been some negativity I have passively allowed to creep in my mind and the worst part is I have been watering those thoughts with belief. Sh*t! I know better than that.

In the days, weeks and months to come, I look forward to spending time in my garden (both figuratively and literally) pulling weeds and watering flowers. With this blog, it is my intention to plant seeds of inspiration and nurture growth for my readers... and reminding everyone to never water a weed.