Marisa Donnelly

There is still hope. Hope in every heartbeat. Hope in every breath. Hope in every morning you get up and put your shoes on, in every moment you choose to stand, to step, to believe.

What my mind doesn’t understand, is that there are some things you just can’t explain—a wild heartbeat, the passion of a kiss, the soft calm of simply hearing someone’s voice—love.

Sometimes I just need a reminder that you’re here, that you care, that you’ve wrestled with the same fears but have chosen to stay, too

Record a hilarious YouTube video for absolutely no reason.

Because nothing beats a good chick flick, am I right?

Revenge does nothing but break your heart even further. But choosing to forgive, to let go, to stop worrying so much about getting even and instead embracing what lies ahead of you—you are brought back into the light again.

I will be the shoulder for your weary head to rest, telling you stories until you fall asleep. I will be the body that helps to lift the weight from you to me. I will be the silence when you have no words to speak, but just to sit next to you in comfort, reminding you that I’m here.

No matter our journey, what connects us is this—the idea that no matter who we are, where we are, or what’s going on in our lives—we are not alone.

Love is my Christianity. Reaching out and hugging people, despite our differences, is my Christianity. Opening myself to new perspectives and beliefs and accepting them, even if they don’t coincide with my personal values, is my Christianity. Caring about other people and their hearts is my Christianity. Celebration is my Christianity.

When you’re homesick for a person, you cannot find where you belong unless it’s with one another, making a dwelling in one another’s hearts, one another’s souls.

Aquarius: Your heart is so beautiful. You are always willing to give, to share, to connect, to be open. There is nothing wrong with wanting to love and be loved.

I don’t have much to offer you—no spells or special powers, no promise of healing or the ability to solve the struggles spinning in your brain. But what I do have is my heart. What I do have is my love. And I know my love can’t save you, but maybe I can help you hurt just a little less.

I don’t care for someone who longs to feel my body; I want a man who is desperate to touch my heart. Someone who wants to learn my mind, who I am, what I believe, what I think about, what I love.

Gemini: “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.”— 1 John 4:7

Be gentle. Gentle with yourself because there is only so much beating your little heart can take.

One day, love will find you. And it will be everything you didn’t know you needed, and everything you’ve desired for so long. It will be all that you waited for, prayed over, wished upon late at night. Love will be worth it, and show you that you’re worth it.

You may be far from me, but we still share the same sky, the same dreams, the same wishes, the same love. You may be far from me, but we still look up and are grounded in who we are and who we’re meant to be—one day, together.

You consider your bond to be closer than family.