This week's favourite find is my post on Friendship and illness. It includes several quotes from the late Irish poet and author John O'Donohue. In addition to the quote I selected below, I would share this one:

"I think there's a natural hunger in the spirit—in everyone's spirit—to be seen, to be understood as you are, and to be received in the space of friendship and love. I always think of friendship and love, ideally, as safe spaces, where you can be as you are without being judged, or without being battered by the force of expectation to be a certain way."

A second favourite find is my post on The gift of my company. In her poem "Breathe," Becky Hemsley tells the tale of a girl who can never please others. For example, "They branded her loud, then were shocked by her silence."

Then she found a small clearing surrounded by firs

And she stopped…and she heard what the trees said to her,

And she sat there for hours not wanting to leave,

For the forest said nothing, it just let her breathe

Here's to the friends who just let you breathe, to the family that creates safe spaces for you, and to the loved ones who welcome you just as you are.

The importance of processing emotions came up in a conversation today. I nodded, as though I knew what "processing emotions" meant when, in truth, I was fuzzy on the concept. So later in the day, I googled the expression. My favourite definition of processing emotions was understanding, making sense of and dealing with emotions in healthy and productive ways.

"When is the last time that you had a great conversation—a conversation which wasn't just two intersecting monologues, which is what passes for conversation a lot in this culture. But when had you had your last great conversation in which you overheard yourself saying things that you never knew you knew, that you heard yourself receiving from somebody words that absolutely found places within you that you thought you had lost, and a sense of an event of a conversation that brought the two of you onto a different plane. And then, fourthly, a conversation that continued to sing in your mind for weeks afterwards."

— John O'Donohue

One of the lessons I have learned in the past eight months...is that heartache cannot and should not be ignored or wished away or masked with inspirational quotes telling us that happiness is a choice. It is to be acknowledged and felt and worked through—all of which take time.

The teacher learns more than the student.

The author learns more than the reader.

The speaker learns more than the attendee.

The way to learn is by doing.

— James Clear

"I’ll tell you about Govan Brown. Govan Brown was a bus driver in New York City. He drove a bus up Madison Avenue. I once got on his bus. It was a very hot August day, very humid. And I was feeling a little irritable, like many people in New York City on a day like that. And when I got on his bus, Govan looked at me and asked, as though he really cared, 'How has your day been going?' And I was shocked, because people in New York City usually don’t have a direct human encounter like that with someone they’ve never seen before. As I sat on the bus, I realized he’s carrying on a conversation with everyone on that bus. People would get off the bus, and he would again say very warmly, 'I hope your day turns out to be a wonderful day for you.'"

— Daniel Goleman

My accomplishments log is not about achieving some impossible level of performance or feeling bad if I don't get something discretionary done on any given day. On the contrary, it's about celebrating those little victories that bring me closer to the kind of life I want to lead—one that's focused on living a healthy, meaningful and altruistic life and spending time with people I love.

In addition to being supportive, Chris is funny, loyal and smart, and I can absolutely be myself around him. He deserves a little appreciation, especially for allowing me to spend hours every day writing this blog and for giving me the freedom to share our stories.

"Behind every young child who believes in himself is a parent who believed first."

— Matthew Jacobson

"Can't clean up the whole room? Clean a corner of it. Can't do all the dishes? Do a dish. Can't get in the shower? Wash your face. Always look for the thing you CAN do, with the energy and focus you DO have. Little wins pave the way for bigger wins. 1% beats 0%."

— Glenn Doyle

Perhaps the girl in the story will grow up to realize that she is neither too loud nor too quiet, neither too fierce nor too weak, neither too bold nor too meek. Perhaps she will come to believe that she is a wonderful human being, with intelligent things to say, compassion to share, and contributions to make. Perhaps she will say to herself, when others are unkind, "You do not deserve the gift of my company." And then she will slip away to the forest, to dance on her own, or she will spend time with others who love her just the way she is.