One day closer to 60! So do I have more advice? You bet I do. Today I want to talk about love. Not just love and sex, but true love. Love is hard–all of it. Loving yourself (the MOST important love of all) is ridiculously hard. Just like they say on an airplane, you have to put your mask on before you can help others, you have to love yourself before you can give your love to others. Some people will think that you are conceited . . . love yourself anyway. Some people will bully you . . . love yourself anyway. Some people will ignore you when you are trying your hardest to be nice . . . love yourself anyway. As Dr. Seuss says “Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” Every single day, you are the love that matters the most. If you love yourself, you can put up with a whole lot more crap than you could otherwise. Self love is kind of like a raincoat. It keeps your love inside to keep your heart warm and lets the crap that others sling at you slide right off. It certainly isn’t easy, but it is possible.

The love of family is also important. They are the people who should be there for you no matter what. That isn’t always the case, but when it is, it is amazing. They know all your secrets (and remind you of them fairly frequently), they know every single time you screwed up (and remind you of that too), and you know that you all have things in common that matter. As unlovable as they may be from time to time, keep loving them!

Once you meet your life partner and start building a family, your love changes. The nucleus of your heart becomes your family. You would do ANYTHING for them. Even as your spouse and children get older, your worries change, but they are still there. From worrying they will fall down while they’re starting to stand, to worrying that they will get hurt playing competitive sports, to worrying when they aren’t home at curfew and you swear every siren you hear is someone racing to them, worry is a form of love. If you didn’t care, you wouldn’t worry.

And then come grandchildren. I swear I didn’t realize how much love my heart could hold until I watched the birth of my first granddaughter. As my son likes to say my heart “grew three sizes that day.” (He fancies himself quite the comedian.)

And through it all are friends. There will be much more on this topic later, but suffice it to say that I love my friends like they are my family because each of them throughout my lifetime (so far) has had a hand in making me who I am. And I kind of love that person!

Love is hard, but oh so rewarding! If you think that no one loves you, take a good long look in the mirror. THAT person is who matters most. Give him or her a kiss for me and then give him or her another one for you.

I love song lyrics and the stories they tell. There is a song that reminds me of today’s advice–Martina McBride’s song “Anyway.” If you haven’t ever heard it, check it out, and then go out and love people anyway. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uLtyzRgmyI