Learning, growing....

A dear friend shared this with me today...It is perfect...It sums up all I am realizing throughout this difficult year...The words strike me deep inside, almost as if I had written them myself.  Life is amazing...and in its simplest form, so beautiful....

a few seconds ago

• 
  After A While
  
  Veronica A. Shoffstall
  
  After a while you learn
  The subtle difference between
  Holding a hand and chaining a soul
  And you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning
  And company doesn’t always mean security.
  And you begin to learn
  That kisses aren’t contracts
  And presents aren’t promises
  And you begin to accept your defeats
  With your head up and your eyes ahead
  With the grace of a woman
  Not the grief of a child
  And you learn
  To build all your roads on today
  Because tomorrow’s ground is
  Too uncertain for plans
  And futures have a way
  Of falling down in mid flight
  After a while you learn
  That even sunshine burns if you get too much
  So you plant your own garden
  And decorate your own soul
  Instead of waiting
  For someone to bring you flowers
  And you learn
  That you really can endure
  That you are really strong
  And you really do have worth
  And you learn and you learn
  With every good bye you learn.