On This Day

I shop at the thrift store, a lot. Some things are even better already used. My favorite thing to bring home is wisdom. I want to share something with you that hangs on the wall of my closet. I’ve had it for quite some time but I have only shown a few close friends.

Here is the full text:

On This Day

Mend a quarrel. Search out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion, and replace it with trust. Write a love letter. Share some treasure. Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest your loyalty in a word or deed.

Keep a promise. Find the time. Forego a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Listen. Apologize if you are wrong. Try to understand. Flout envy. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Appreciate. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little more.

Deserve confidence. Take up arms against malice. Decry complacency. Express your gratitude. Worship your God. Gladden the heart of a child. Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth. Speak your love. Speak it again. Speak it still again. Speak it still once again.

I read this every day, it is sacred to me. Sometimes I go through a wave of emotion at a certain part. It is like reading it for the first time, because I find some new way it is relevant to my life.

All my life, I have felt so different, but struggled to feel normal. I have a sense of self that feels more like a jigsaw puzzle. I have relied on the kindness of others to find my way. I have truly been carried by grace. Today, as I read it, I reflect on the part that says “Speak your love.” To family, to friends, to teachers, to strangers. You have been my angels. 🤍