"our fault is being human,
mistakes are everywhere,
i am sorry for ever being unkind
or acting like i didn’t care.
there’s one sad truth in life i’ve found,
after traveling from east to west;
the only people we really wound
are those who we love best.
....
so let me end by saying one thing:
I love you, I love you, I do,
you’re my best friend, you make me happy
and I want to do the same for you.
...
ps. and if this apology does not suffice,
i will make you a thousand plates of chicken and rice."

the end.


and yes, the poem above was written by me a few years ago.
it is the equivalent of second grade english, i know.

i found this tonight on my computer,
and after totally forgetting about it,
(my poetic ability may not have been such a bad thing to forget)
i was reminded of one very wonderful thing:
i am grateful for love,
and for the love that always allows forgiveness.

i realize that i am far from perfect,
in fact i always will be.
but there are those who love me,
who love me despite my imperfectness,
and a certain someone who loved me even
after receiving this tragic poem,
and after eating one-too-many plates of my specialty:
chicken and rice.

and then i think of all the others in my life,
who, for some reason, still love me too.

and that makes me very grateful for love this year.

A Soul Generated By Love.

Considering that most of us will catch a break this upcoming Monday, as we take time off from school, work and the other stresses of life while we celebrate Martin Luther King Day,
I thought the quote below was especially fitting given the recent tragedy in Haiti.


"Everyone can be great, because anybody can serve.
You don't have to have a college degree to serve.
You don't have to make your
subject and verb agree to serve.
You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love."
-Martin Luther King, Jr.

I'm sure most of you were devastated as you heard
about the earthquake in Haiti,
and as you heard the death tolls rising to over 40 to 50 thousand,
in addition to the three million mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, children
who have been injured, orphaned or homeless.

i was able to catch a second of the evening news before i went to bed last night,
and saw a videotape of children crying as they
carried their mothers and fathers from the rubble who did not survive.

as heartbreaking and devastating as it was,
there is still good to be seen.

As my friend Jalene pointed out earlier today:
(despite politics,
despite disputes,
despite the chaos,
despite the costs,)
people and nations all around the world
are doing what they can, and lending out a reaching hand to
those who need it most.

and although i, too, live far away from the devastation, this
tragedy has hit close to home, and i felt like i had to do what i could too.

below i listed several causes that you may be interested in donating to:



LDS Humanitarian Services
Center of Hope
Doctors Without Borders
American Red Cross
International Rescue Committee



and as Martin Luther King pointed out:
you don't need much to serve,
Just "a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love."

i wish you all the most wonderful weekend.

(photo via msnbc.com)