With Thanks To @mattdelapena & @lorenlong, With Thanks To LOVE. #THISISLOVE

I wanted to begin this morning's post in a couple of ways - a nod to Maya Angelou or a selection of Walt Whitman's Song of Myself - poetry that has spoken to me throughout my life. I thought about taking the word, love, and writing it 1,000 times to leave it for what I want to say this morning. I wanted to quote the book, to share it, to celebrate it, and to let the universe know that my life changed for the better for reading a text that is so needed, so beautifully sculpted and illustrated, and so magical (I have already contemplated looking into a warehouse where I could store several copies to distribute to students, teachers, parents, friends and family, spending every paycheck I have to put this beautiful children's book into the hands of others). Instead, I bought a copy for my parents, my son, and the mentor who changed the way I viewed the world with her undying support of my own.

All the books I've read, the movies I've seen, and the experiences I've had have led me to one simply complex, complex simplicity, in a four-letter word, which is the title of this masterpiece, Love. Love is the answer and I'm thankful to any and all who have shared love with me and helped me to share my love with others.

Love

I love a nation built on diversity and the pursuit of an American dream.

I love when someone places a book in my hands and says, "Here. I thought of you when I read this."

I love the ways waves lap against the sand and storm systems keep me guessing.

I love what I've learned from young people in classrooms: those who were American-born and who came from other nations to share their stories, their dreams, and their hard work.

I love that what I knew as truth becomes truer as a result of diversity, culture, histories, perspectives, art, and stories.

I love a good meal, one at a restaurant with friends, or one carefully prepared by a family member when I'm lucky enough to be around them.

I love laughter, the inside jokes with many, who find a way to chuckle amidst the chaos.

I love memories, and the sneaky way they trickle before me through a phone call, a photograph, a social media post, or a letter.

I love weird socks that allow me to look professional on the outside, yet with the secrecy of being hidden under slacks can say, "Well, at least my feet are a true representation."

I love a good haircut and the stories my barber shares with me, edging my sideburns and offering his humanity as he comments on the news, a customer, his colleagues, or something running through his head.

I love grocery shopping, choices, opportunities, and the possibilities that come from aisles, carts,  purchases, and a kitchen in my home home.

I love my sneakers, whatever I have for the roads, and what they provide me for getting fresh air and and contemplating my yesterday, my today, and my tomorrow (sometimes with an iPod, but mostly with the sounds of the everyday).

I love teachers, who are warriors, sages, healers, shoulders, and visionaries.

I love The Great Whatever, & Whatever Great that comes with fate...

I love books and their smells, the knowledge they give me, and the ways they make me become a  believer in a better, more informed world.

I love hugs from strangers and from the ones I cherish most.

I love that I am, because we are, and this is Ubuntu.

I love love, too, because I've never seen a way where hate accomplishes anything...the elephant shoes and shoes and elephants.

And I love having having an opportunity to ask, "How can I be a better person today?"

Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love
Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love
Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love
Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love
Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love
Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love
Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love
Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love
Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love
Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love Love

Thank you, Matt and Loren, for magically crafting a book so many of us need right now (and will need long after we're gone). There is no need for a review here; rather, I write this morning to say, "Everyone needs this book in their house, on their coffee tables, for their children, for their grandparents and great grandparents, in their classrooms, at their offices, and in their hearts."

Love.

That's it.

Love.