Respond to your children with love in their worst moments their broken moments their angry moments their selfish moments their lonely moments their f… - L.R. Knost

The world told you
that you had to hide your pain,
to be small and quiet,
so you wouldn't rock the boat.
And you believed.
Then one day you saw
the silent pain in the eyes
of a small and quiet girl
in a boat bound
for nowhere.
And a warrior awoke.
You freed the girl from the silent shackles
and told her that her story mattered,
to tell it deep and wide and loud,
to set the boat ablaze
with every fierce and fiery word
so all the world could hear
and heal.
And you believed.

Forgiving ourselves and learning from our inevitable mistakes transforms failure from a stumbling block into a stepping stone.

It is when speaking is not safe
that we must speak.
It is when taking a stand hurts
that we must stand.
Whenever freedom is threatened,
we must resist.
When forces oppress us,
we must persist.
And when hope deserts us,
we must rest...
then pick up the torch again
and again
and again
until all are free to do the same.