I love…

My Mom. A shining example of love, forgiveness, and possibility. And humor, grace, and beauty. Stability. My rock. That is my mama. I have heard it said that we choose our parents in order to learn the lessons we need most to learn. Should that be true, I must have needed to learn how to be effortlessly elegant, generous beyond words, witty as hell, fiesty, smart, and strong. Class is a woman who turns every head in the room with her smile, poise, and natural charm and doesn’t even seem to notice. That, is my mama.

My brother. My hero. My partner in crime. He protects me, and he protects this country. He is makes me laugh like no one can. He is steady and sturdy. He is witty and he is smart. Smarter than he knows or will ever give himself credit for. A laundry list of amazing accomplishments – marathons, degrees, fighting for our freedom – and we loved him every bit as much before all of that as we do now. And always will. Because he is our guy. Our one and only. Had God not chosen him for me, I would have somehow found him and chosen him myself.

My best friend Margaret. Margaret was INSPIRATION and LOVE personified. And continues to shape the woman I aspire to become. Understated, calm and wise. The biggest heart to ever exist. My angel.

My Sadie-cakes. The crooked smile I wake up to and the snoring I fall asleep to. A lesson in resilience, innocence, and living in the present moment. Unconventional beauty. And all the more beautiful because of it.

PMB. Lovable, forgiving, confused and complex. Not afraid to wear red pants. Brilliant. Far beyond us all in the ways of the mind. And yet vulnerable and deserving of the kind of nurturing that softens the heart and lifts the load. Vulnerability that blinds with beauty and innocence, but seen by few if at all.

The trees. The woods. The quiet.

The sunset. The water. The wind.

God.