The Power of Words - A Love Story

Starting from childhood, I have always had an affinity with two things - words and falling in love. The minute I heard, “Once upon a time…and they lived happily ever after,” I was hooked. My impressionable heart watched with wide eyes as two characters on a screen danced around each other until that magical moment occurred, and the love they never knew they needed, was right there to be found.

So, for years I honed my craft in writing by analyzing how other writers expertly blended the right ingredients to create the perfect love affair: a pinch of tension, an ounce of passion, a dab of timing, and then voilà – amore. And stored away in the recesses of my mind is a catalog of my favorite lines. Words that were strung together so beautifully, that they pulled at the heartstrings, forming a symphony of memories and inspiring a lifetime of expression:

"You know that place between sleep and awake, the place where you can still remember dreaming? That's where I'll always love you…that's where I'll be waiting”. –Peter Pan

How do these words make you feel? Does it take you to a place or time in your life where you loved someone, but the timing wasn’t quite right? Or, maybe you’ve had to leave a lover behind, because life required you to move forward? Personally, it takes me to a chapter in my life where I was seeing someone that I cared for very deeply, but she lived far away. And even though we managed to see each other as often as we could, the strain of distance was beginning to take its toll. I didn’t want to lose her, but what could I do to let her know that she was always with me, even when we were physically apart? Words combined with true emotion found a way to bridge the distance, and I told her:

“Every night, when the sky is darkest and the stars are brightest, go out and find the single star whose beauty outshines all others, and know that I am staring at the same star, thinking of you.”

You see real words come from a place of honesty and vulnerability. And real love can only exist if we are honest with each other and allow ourselves to be vulnerable:

“I love you without knowing how, why, or even from where.” -Patch Adams

The minute I saw her I knew that she was special. We would talk for hours and I would have to catch myself from getting lost in her details...her lips, her eyes, her skin, her smile – her words. “This is happening too fast,” I thought. There must be an explanation. I begin to interrogate my feelings. Is there magic in the touch of her hand? Is there passion in her kiss? Can you hold her close and not want to let go? Do you love her unconditionally? Do you know what that means? Can you see the sunshine in her eyes? Can you feel the warmth of her smile? Can happiness be defined by a moment spent with her? Does her beauty mesmerize you? Do you remember a life before her? Can you imagine a life without her? Oh, no, these weren’t questions at all; this was my heart telling me to let go of my fear and doubt and accept that she had become - my life:

"This kind of certainty, comes but once in a lifetime." - Bridges of Madison County

In my writing and in my life I have lived by one creed, “The words are never hard to find, if the heart leads the way.” The power of words is undeniable, and when coupled with honesty and vulnerability they can open your eyes to a world of possibilities. And yes, even after all these years, I’m still that little kid that believes in the fairytale. And if you’ve gotten this far into my story and you still don’t understand why, please allow me to leave you with this:

“Think of something so beautiful and tempting to touch, but is out of the reach of man...stars on a clear night…the sun setting over a crystal blue ocean…a rainbow that forms after a storm. And then I think about your smile and how all those other visions just pale in comparison.”