Promise you will love me with each new sunrise; every breath you take; the entirety of your heart.

Promise me that we’ll always make time for each other, and to celebrate the one of a kind love that we together have made.

Promise that you won’t give me half of you, because I am a girl who wants to see and know and love all of you. Even the parts you’re not so keen on yourself. Especially those parts. Because I want you to know that our flaws and crazy quirks are the very things that make us so beautifully human.

Promise that you’ll make me feel it. That you’ll make your love known. I know it’s hard. It’s hard to bare your soul to anyone. It’s incredibly hard for me too. But promise at least to try.

Promise not to take us for granted. Promise to nurture, and to work on our love always. Without this, we will cease to grow. Our love will stand still.

Promise me you’ll continue to try. Because that’s what it takes to not fall back out of love with someone. You both have to work at it to keep things exciting. It won’t work if one person is not putting in the same amount of care and attention.

Promise me, that you won’t choose to give up on us. Even when you feel like everything is falling apart, and you don’t believe that I’ll be able to help you stick any of it back together.

Promise to practice forgiveness, because it’s inevitable we’ll both say and do things sometimes that we do not mean, or wish we could take back. But we can’t. All we can do is continue to move forward, together.

For two will always be stronger than one.

Promise that you’ll look into my eyes when you ask me if I’m okay, and that you won’t always believe me when I tell you that I am. I’m the kind of girl who doesn’t want to burden anyone with my troubles. But sometimes it’s nice to share them with you. I’d really like that. I would.

Promise me that when it gets tough, you’ll fight for us, because I promise you that I will. Always. This was never going to be easy. Know that nothing worth having ever is. But for me, we’re worth the blood, the sweat, and all of the tears that come with choosing a forever kind of love. The kind that all of us are searching and praying for.

Promise to love me if I hit rock bottom. When I pull away and try to distance myself from your love. When I do whatever I can to tear everything we’ve built right back down to rubble on the ground. When I’m hurting from a pain so intense that I can no longer hear my own thoughts circling in my head. Promise to stick by my side, and know that I will do the same for you.

Promise me, that if you’re truly, madly, deeply in love with me; you won’t let go.

But promise me that if you ever find your eyes or your heart wandering, that you’ll muster the courage to explain yourself. If you don’t plan to love me like I’m everything, then please let me go. Let me go now. Set me free; allow me to fly. Let me find the man that will look at me each day like I’m fairy dust. Let me find him. Because our time here is fleeting, and we all deserve our shot at a love like that.

And if you plan on breaking your promises, please promise me nothing. Don’t ever say something you know you don’t mean. I would rather bear the temporary pain of your no’s, than a deceitful yes.

I know promises are hard. They require inner strength, and integrity, and true work of the heart. I was going to instead ask you to try. But anyone can try. I need you to promise.