Danny, “Personal Trainer”

I would sit and encourage you
show you the right way
I would do it for nothing
for an hour of my day.

You said you didn't look good
You needed some help
I was the one who could help you
because I knew how you felt.

I saw you succeeding
I knew you could tell
until one day
when you nearly fell.

It was frightening to you
And I felt really bad
I didn't want you to leave
feeling afraid and mad.

I didn't know if you'd return
our next scheduled day
so I did all I could do
bowed my head and prayed.

Please help us move forward
In both training and as friends
so together will reach
our goal in the end.

Its important to me
to help her reach that dream
she has spirit and spunk
much more than she sees.

Nervously I waited
for that day to come
then she walked in with a smile
and I knew, in that moment, we'd won.


By Jordan C. Long
11th Grade English Class Assignment.

For My Mommy who fights for everything in her life;
and for Danny, who reminds her how to.

Changing

I used to be afraid. Scared of the unknown.
Now I am nervous, but curious about whats next.
Someday I will be assured and fearless.

I used to say I cant, its too hard.
Now I say "Seriously?", and "I'll Try".
Someday I will smile and say "No Problem".

I used to wonder how I can do this alone.
Now I know I don't have to do it alone, because you are there.
Someday I wont need you to hold my hand to get me through,
but instead to walk with me just because we are friends.

I used to cry because I was alone, lost, and sad.
Now I cry as I realize I am "becoming".
Someday... I won't cry anymore.

I used to think Love was something someone gave to you.
Now I think Love is shared between people who understand each other.
Someday I will realize that Love begins by Loving and understanding yourself.

True Love

True Love is not a romance novel, and it isn't living happily ever after.
It is not walking around on cloud nine, stolen kisses, and lustful glances.
Although these things are nice, they are not what real true love is about.

True Love is... Laughing freely.
It is a smile that crosses your face, when you don't even realize it because that special person is on your mind.
It is tireless days after long nights of never having enough time with one another.
It is missing that person moments after they have gone.
It is feeling ok with yourself because you know in your heart of hearts... in this moment... with this person... you are wonderful just the way you are.
It is saying I Love You and feeling it ache in the marrow of your bones because it feels so right.
It is in the moments we share, or that call you make at just the perfect time.
It is messages that lift our spirits, even when they don't contain anything of real substance.
It is looking forward to hearing that scratchy first words of the morning voice and loving how it sounds because you are the first person to hear it.
It is that silly thing I say that makes you laugh, or that silly thing you chuckle about before you say it, because you know it will make me laugh.
It is not wanting to go to sleep because you want just one more minute together.
It is a connection so deep and rare that it can never be replaced by another.

This is True Love. This is Us. This is You.

Moments of You

You guide my thoughts
while I sleep and when I am awake.
You remind me that when I feel like giving up
miracles happen.
You renew my faith and show me hope.
There is a place where happiness lives, and it is obtainable.
You awaken Love and show me it has no end.
You remind me that through you, anything is possible.
You renew my soul in ways unimagined...
ways I never want to forget.

In Moments of you
I can find peace.
Love everlasting
Life Eternal.
In those moments of you
there is a place where I am free.

You held my hand in times of need
You comfort all my fears.
In you, I am whole,
no ties to bind me
no fear to hold me down
no cares in the world
just you, reminding me,
I am perfect in your sight.

In Moments of you
I can find peace.
Love everlasting
Life Eternal.
In those moments of you
there is a place where I am free.

Happily Ever After

“Once Upon A Time” is how life begins, and “Happily Ever After” is how we are taught the saga plays itself out. If only real life were so simple. As impressionable young girls we are led to believe that fairy tales can and do exist. Forever is a real and tangible possibility. That Love is a lasting feeling that carries us through even the roughest spots in the road of life we travel. No one tells us about the potholes, the pitfalls, or the cliffs that will present along our journey into womanhood. As we take a spouse; believing that we have found that soul mate that will elate our souls giving wing and flight to carry us breathlessly and effortlessly through the journey which lies ahead. Never were we warned about the mundane existence that becomes the life of a woman as she falls into the world of motherhood and housework. Overwhelmed by the world that has immersed her soul, it is all she can do to keep her head above the drowning waters. Lost... a soul forgotten... tears find her as she lies down at night to sleep, Hoping beyond all hope that in her dreams she will find peace and tranquility that will help her make it through just one more day. This is her plea, her prayer, each and every night.

The heart yearns for just one moment in time that will carry her through. A touch, a glance, something tangible to hold on to and never let slip away. Something that is just enough to give her a glimpse of a fairytale long forgotten. She aches for that all encompassing feeling, that lives only in this moment, unable to ever be captured again. It takes your breath away yet at the same time breathes new life into a once ruined soul. It grants peace in the mere knowledge that perfect Love exists, no matter how fleeting it may be. It cannot be reproduced, although the heart yearns and suffers for that simplistic influence with every breath taken. It is indescribable, as words don’t begin to brush the edge of this divine emotion. Shared only by two people that have a deep connection that transcends all boundaries of heaven and earth. A voyeuristic journey into the soul, as though I am Alice peering through the looking glass in beguiling wonderment. This is true Love. This instance that gives life, expelling all else, and renewing the woman locked away within. Dreaming and hoping for a promise that was given her as a small child, something tangible that will overcome all opposition, and bring her to a place of rest. That place where eternity is real, where Love abounds, and fairy tales come true.

For not only myself, but for my daughters, and their daughters to come after them... for all those who are lost and yearning .... I wish for each of us, that one simple moment where truth prevails and that brief moment reminds us that Love is real, Love exists, Love is all encompassing. May it linger in our hearts and souls until the ends of time.