For Sarah

Listen to me, sister. I want to tell you something.

You are thirteen years old, and you trust people so fully, and that is so beautiful. 

But people will not always love you, and sometimes those who claim to love you won't always show you, won't prove it to you when you need it, and you'll find yourself brushing ashes off of your heart. With living water, put out the flames. Don't let fire ruin you because someone else wasn't careful with their matches. 

Listen to me, you must tread lightly. Interact lightly with yourself. Speak to others gently and remember that everyone feels, just like you do. Be kind. Be kind to others, and be kind to yourself. Allow yourself to mess up, and don't forget to clean up afterwords. Say, "I'm sorry. I was wrong." Remember that there is always forgiveness, if not from others, always from Him. With that knowledge, chill. :) Don't be so hard on yourself. Laughter can be the best remedy after a rough day.

Listen to me, you can't fix people. Your love won't make her stop hating her father, and your devotion won't cure her of her childhood. All you can do is be there, violets sprouting out from your ribs, acceptance on your lips, your own wounds still bleeding. All you can do is be there, and sometimes, that's enough. Sometimes, that's everything.

Listen to me, hating yourself for your imperfection is human and natural and pointless. Love formed you in your mother's womb. Listen to me, little sister, your face, your stomach, your eyes, your legs, you are perfect in Love's hands. You are born of Truth. You look the father of lies in the face and you tell him, "No. I am whole. I am beautiful. I am worthy of love. I am not incomplete. I stand behind my Abba. You can do nothing with me. You are not welcome. I know where I am found." 

Listen to me, Sarah, you are precious. You ARE precious. Forgive those who try to convince you otherwise, muddying your walls with their ink. They let someone convince them a long time ago that "precious" was not a word they could paint with, so they stopped, and bitterness has replaced it, and black is the color they carry around in their pockets and spill onto others. Onto you. But even black ink can be removed. You just have to find the right shade of blue to replace it. Maybe you'll even help them to find it, too.

Listen to me, I am here. I cannot promise I will always be here. But I am here, and you have me, and I have you, and we must be content with Love's purpose for what is, right now, right at this moment. You must learn to memorize His heartbeat. Let it fill you up when you feel empty and lifeless. There is always life to find, always a song, but you must look, little sister. You must look.

Listen to me, the world is turning under your feet and life is happening and you cannot freeze it. Ice is unstable, you will get hurt if you try to tame it. Unclench your fists, sister, and take what comes with grace. Grace, grace, learn to dance with grace. You'll find it easier to walk, and the ground will find you easier to bear. 

Listen to me, you are loved, very loved. Love came down two thousand years ago and cleaned up all your messes, forever. You must learn what to do with that Love, you must learn to embrace Him. Oh, He will do marvelous things when you embrace Him. 

You must learn to choose Him first, something I am still learning to do myself. Let Him love you in return. Don't allow yourself to become jaded. Rest in the Love that will never let go of you, even when everyone else seemingly has. 

He never will. I promise you, He never will. Sarah, my sister, you are held and you are secure and you have nothing to fear and Love will never let go of you. 

He will never, ever let you go.

❤