I purchased my key at first for the incredible message. Then I thought of this notebook that I came across as a teen. It contained fiction, poems, doodles, library cards, gum, blood, biographies, personal alien abduction accounts, hair, dog and cat fur, razors, and love letters for someone who might never have known, and it was written by people all ages all over the U.S. I found it fascinating. I hung on to it for a year before I could allow myself to let this journal move on.
In particular, a story at the end of this journal always stuck with me. It was written by a young girl, I assume. I won't go into to detail of the story, as it is triggering as well as personal. But the young author at the end of her story said, "You're not alone, you're loved." This is not the first or last time I would hear this in my life, but that one stuck.
LOVE is something I find the hardest to do: loving myself, loving my friends and family, or the man I share my bed and heart with. This key will remind me to be open for love, to tell each person I cherish that they are loved, to make sure my man knows how much I love him even during an episode. It will remind me to look in the mirror when I am a blubbering, sloppy, shaking mess and say, "You're not alone, you're loved." I hope to pass LOVE to someone who needs it as much as I do.
-Jennifer
