To Write Love on Her Arms

So I Remember Later

Jun. 1, 2010 at 1:25pm

Dear Today (or Yesterday as the case may be), I am thankful you happened.I believe I can confidently say that today was the best Memorial Day I’ve ever had.
The others were fine, but they were just days, the possibility of a break from school or work, and (if I remembered) for remembering people who have served in my place to protect a freedom I take for granted.
(And perhaps I am a horrible person for not remembering, but that is a different blog.)
But today, I remember.

Today, I remember we are broken creatures.
I remember our brokenness is not the end, that we can let the light in through the cracks.
I remember intersections mean that we are coming from different angles.
I remember to be thankful for the crossing.
I remember we must work to sew ourselves to each other.
I remember pulling the threads takes steady fingers and commitment.
I remember that roots are worth it, no matter how temporary.
And these are pretentious and varying metaphors, yet they completely capture my Memorial Day.

Today was made of a few good conversations leading me to all those conclusions.
Tonight, I sat at a picnic table with a woman I should, by all potential intersections, already know but didn’t until two weeks ago.
As the water steadily slapped the rocks and the clouds moved like a slideshow above us, we talked about Ms. Britt and Meredith College, our love for the most beautiful of the Carolinas, the strings that attach us to where we come from and where we’ve been, and the women we believe we’ve always been and are becoming more of everyday.
When I talked about feeling like my strings are tight and the strain hurts, she tilted my perspective.
She reminded me that tight strings make for beautiful melodies and maybe my melody of this time will serve a purpose for someone else.
And maybe that doesn’t sound profound to you, reading this on a screen.
Maybe you need the darkness and streetlights and rock-slapping water to get the full effect, but for me, for tonight, she gave the metaphor a weight I needed to see.

And I remember why I wanted to come here.
It was for conversations like today, for the intentional and genuine curiosity of a stranger that plants the seeds of beautiful friendships.
It was for nights like tonight, where, despite the bugs and the heat and the humidity and the creepers, we were not leaving that fucking bench.
Days like today make me feel more alive and more myself.
And I remember my story is mine, and I choose how to tell it.
Dear Today, I needed you very much.

Love and hope and grace and peace to you on this Tuesday.
May you have days like this, where you write all the details because they are too good for the possibility of forgetting.
Thank you for reading.

whitney

PS: To read more of Whitney's writing, check out her blog.

Posted in General, Journal by Chris Youngblood

Comments (17)

Like sitting on a street corner with a friend while waiting for a ride home, with nothing but those two street lights illuminating your faces, speaking of things you never thought you had the courage to reveal. It's moments like that, that make me realize I am not alone. We all have our stories, we just need to share them with others and create a bond in order to survive in this world.

1 | Left by erica | Jun. 1, 2010 at 5:41pm

These day are really specials. A simple conversation may be significant forever. Be unforgettable.

Hugs from brazil.

2 | Left by Malú | Jun. 2, 2010 at 12:28pm

Conversations like that help keep me alive, help me not go crazy in this fight.

3 | Left by Kendra | Jun. 2, 2010 at 4:50pm

Thank you for this- I needed to read this today. I needed this reminder very much- the reminder that everyday holds promise even when it feels hard to keep moving...Thank you.

4 | Left by Jillian Nichole | Jun. 3, 2010 at 9:54pm

Hope you guys keep up the good fight! From Sam, Australia

5 | Left by Sam | Jun. 4, 2010 at 10:34am

you really helped my day;
i started out having a very rough,sad day but that just helped me. thank you, that was all i needed to make it through the day.

6 | Left by madison | Jun. 6, 2010 at 4:52am

guys idk what to do n e more. i honestly dont know if life is worth living, if anyone out there cares enough to txt me i honestly think tonight might be my lastidk what to think n e more 5866463964

7 | Left by joey | Jun. 6, 2010 at 4:42pm

Hi Joey! I can help you!!

8 | Left by Lyssa | Jun. 8, 2010 at 8:59am

I agree with Erica. We need to get our story out and we need people to realize that they're not alone. That God and TWLOHA is with us each step of the way. If anyone who posts comments on here needs someone to talk you and you feel like nobody is there to listen and help you out feel free to text me. I am available alot and i am a good listener. Im not the best at giving advice but i can try. I don't want anyone to feel like they have to suffer. So please, text or call anytime!!!!!

9 | Left by lyssa | Jun. 8, 2010 at 9:02am

Sorry, lol. My number is 4196031268! =]

10 | Left by lyssa | Jun. 8, 2010 at 9:04am

It's conversations like these that saved my life. If I hadn't spilled my guts to her and told her everything that day in the bathroom at school, I wouldn't be here to type this. Thank you for posting this...It made my day...

11 | Left by Michelle | Jun. 8, 2010 at 5:27pm

I've been depressed but im alittle over it i told my friend who has never left my side and who has always helped me through my depression and she has supported me through it all i love her im the kind of person who needs to talk about everything i just love to let everything out and i would like to thank miley cyrus.Miley you are amazing i love you i made it through my depression because of you you've made me the strong confident person i am now you are my inspiration and my role model you have a big heart and you are so amazing i love you your a great person and dont ever forget that i will tell this story for the rest of my life and i will also mention that miley cyrus the singer and actress is the one who helped me live my life!i love you miley!

12 | Left by maddy | Jun. 14, 2010 at 9:11pm

Amazing. Writings like this inspire me so much. I became a therapist after years of struggles. My struggles continue today, regardless of how much I can help others. Reading words like this, hitting exactly what I feel on the head, inspires me, uplifts me, and makes me stronger. Thanks Whitney.

13 | Left by Kristin | Jun. 15, 2010 at 8:44am

thankyou for sharing this whitney :)

14 | Left by Anon | Jun. 15, 2010 at 8:53pm

to write love is my hero. i read the blogs and entries on the website all the time. but sometimes, like now, i sit here just staring at the words on my computer screen and start thinking about how truly amazing this is. all the people on here, the writers, the founders and the supporters are strangers to me. but somehow, these strangers' words turn into the words that i feel; and i think it's amazing that complete strangers can feel each others' words like this. everyone of you on here deserves to be loved and to live and to be happy. talk to someone, anyone, because you matter. and i know that sometimes being told that isn't enough but you have to believe and trust those who tell you so. thank you to everyone involved in twloha. you all are my heros.

15 | Left by Kay | Jun. 16, 2010 at 11:38am

Just amazing. im so glad i have found to write love. the people here, have been through this. lived it. people who havnt just dont understand. complete strangers can help each other, and feel like they know them. everyone deserves to be loved, happy, and alive. everyone here matters, thank you everyone involved in twloha. your my heros.

16 | Left by Orion | Jun. 24, 2010 at 2:03pm

Thank you for this. I have come a long way from where I was at one point but I still deal with days where I get really depressed. I know that none of my friends understand because none of them have gone through the two years of hell that I lived through. I lost so many people for reasons I still don't understand and as far as relationships go, I was used, lied to, and cheated on by one guy after another for so long. That past haunts me almost constantly and on days when I wonder if life's worth living, and I consider slipping back into my old world of cutting and being willing to do anything to escape the pain, things like this remind me that my life is worth living and that with the help of people who really care, I can keep moving forward. I hope that someday I'll be able to help people move forward from situations similar to what I went through. Thank you so much for this Whitney. This really helped me alot.

17 | Left by Katherine | Jun. 25, 2010 at 7:48pm

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