Thank You

I know it's hard.

I know the world is frightening, and the people we love most hurt us without trying.

I know our politicians are indifferent and our professions more willing to discard us than train us to do better.

I know sometimes our inner pain eclipses all our strength, and often our common sense.

I know some of you bear terrible burdens that you're unwilling to share because the rest of the world is carrying their own load.

So I'm going to say thank you.

Thank you for showing up on social media every day and saying kind things or funny things.

Thank you for sending of posting things that will make me or other people laugh.

Thank you for waking up and facing the slog of life one more time, even when you feel overwhelmed.

Thank you for sharing pictures of  your fur-babies and telling us all their stories and knowing that we understand because we have fur-babies of our own.

Thank you for not finding life too painful to bear.

Thank you for reading and sharing and giving me a thousand things to read and permission to share my own.

Thank you for ranting about your bosses or your husbands or your kids or your knitting so we know we're not the only ones out there who get pissed off too.

Thank you for using words--not the most effective means of communication but the only one we've got--to continue to keep hold of those tenuous bonds that make us human.

Thank you for crying sometimes and giving your friends permission to comfort you.

Thank you for cheering when somebody you know gets home safely!

Thank you for giving virtual hugs when they're stuck at the airport for what feels like eternity.

Thank you for silly Twitter conversations.

Thank you for serious and ernest Twitter threads.

Thank you for keeping the faith that the world can get better.

Thank you for doing so many things, both great and small, to help fix it.

Thank you for building a community of the most positive faith you can muster.

Thank you for inviting me to be a part of it.

Thank you for finding a reason to wake up, every day, even when your hearts are sore and your body is sad and your soul feels worn to shreds.

And bless you, bless you all. May your sadness grow easier to bear. May your pain lessen. May you see the light, the sun, the silver lining, the blue sky, the fuzzy kitten, the beam of joy, the whatever it is that you cling to to get up one more day and do it again until it gets easier, better, and the beauty of your soul can shine through.

Thank you.

You are loved.

Amy