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GAP YEAR
Tags: Sabbatical, Academic Writing, Year In Review, Gap Year

GAP YEAR

What is it like having a gap year? A gap year is a furlough year, taken by students for pleasure or some other purpose. A gap year is usually taken between a high school and university. A gap year can be taken either for a semester or a year /few months. A gap year has its boon and bane.

Let’s begin. A gap year helps us to gain various skills in this period. These skills help you get a good impression on your CV and you can get good jobs. Students also take a gap year for recreation. They can tour different places for relaxation of mind and enjoyment. Another reason for taking a gap year is so that students can prepare themselves academically. A gap year is also taken to apply for an internship and can gain experience.

If you have no planning for a sabbatical year, then it’s useless to take a gap year and wastes much of your precious time. It can be expensive if living abroad. It becomes a bit harder to start your study after a long leave. If a student opts to take a gap year he should utilize that time by having a thorough reading of their academic books so they don’t forget anything at least once a week. You can gain more skills in this period. Improving English language and going for the fluency of a second language.

A drawback of the gap year is that your friends head off to higher classes in colleges and then you would get admission in a class lower than them, so you can’t get together. About 40% of the students nationwide take a gap year.

It is said that a gap year is good for medical students as they can get a thorough learning time frame and they improve themselves academically and make themselves capable to enter medical colleges by scoring high grades in entry tests.

According to my experience, as it is said that a gap year prepares you academically but in the same way it makes you away from studies and books. Because you want time to relax from the arduous routine but this makes you a lazy bluffer and you become weak in your studies. A gap year helps you maintain your physical health by taking part in sports you can also become an athlete. There is a need to pursue your passions during this period to know which field is best to select as your career. You can keenly think about your career… Through gap year you get time to think about it.

You can do things of your interest. Take part in your activities at home. They can spend their time with family, helping their parents with housework, giving attention to self-grooming and your house, improving households and many more things to do.

The one who takes a gap year is seen to be graduated before his peers. Those students are better in their studies and exams than their fellows. It is because such brilliant student knows that studies are more important than anything else, so they utilize their gap year wisely. A wise person is aware of how to work wisely and efficiently.
2020 A Year In Review
By: Karen Kaye
Tags: Masks, Graduation, 2020, Covid 19, Year In Review

2020 One we won’t soon forget

In the year 2020, the year of the pandemic, we saw America fall to it’s lowest levels since the Great Depression. The year started with fires, the death of Kobe Bryant, murder hornets, a year that without sports, a President being impeached, lockdowns, riots, the election of a new President, allegations of fraud and rigged elections. It is concluding with the possibility of millions of American losing their homes, as more and more Americans die from the Coronavirus. It has a President who incites, pardons and encourages bad criminal behavior.

Social Media platforms became the new normal for speaking out for social justice, and getting the word out to Vote. It showed just how many people were living a life filled with hatred land jealousy. It amazes me how many people unempathetic towards others, all they care about is their own they have a lack of caring and helping others in times of despair.

What 2020 showed us this is that we have a long road of work ahead, and long way to go. The year we lost a lot of iconic sports legends like Kobe Bryant , Tom Seaver, Lou Brock, and Bob Gibson. Country Superstars, Charley Pride, to K.T. Oslin. We are all ready to move on to see what 2021 will hold but the pandemic will follow us into the new year. It is a time when Americans, are losing their homes, and struggling to survive many don’t have enough to eat.

A year like 2020, a time like no other leaves many reflecting back to the past a time spent with family and friends. In some cases a time of wonderment, thinking of ancestors in the past and if they wore a mask during the pandemic. The pandemic has given to us a sense of family, while desiring the need to be near and around family. It has brought about skills that we never knew we had. It brought cooking back into our lives, how to connect with family virtually, through zoom, drive by birthday , graduation parties and visits through windows.

Contactless Delivery at ASU

The advancements in technology in advancements of delivery services to keep us safe in a contactless world while staying safe. The year that home delivery became trending, and the year that virtual reality became real to more and more people around the world.

However, there are to many people who refused to change, and actually believe that the pandemic was a hoax. The year of the lockdowns, created a sense of people who showed how they did not care for their fellow man. A time when we should come together, is the year we learned just how divided we are. A year that showed just how many people felt their rights were being violated by refusing to social distance, wear a mask.

Everywhere you went you saw signs that told you which way to go, and where to stand. It gave a the most secure election in the history of the United States, while there were efforts to try and over turn our democracy.
My 41 Favorites of 2020
By: Allan Chochinov
Tags: 2020, Long Reads, Happy New Year 2021, Year In Review, Hobbies And Activities

APPRECIATE STUFF

Violet Wilson, April 2020

This is the link I’m pretty confident you will forward.

Butterscotch, March 2020

This entire series of “increasing complexity” is so fantastic — such a great construct. Also check out Jacob Collier Plays the Same Song In 18 Increasingly Complex Emotions. (I also want to check out People Doing Things Fast series.)

1242212027 (Douyin) via @artskillgallery, December 2020

Remarkable.

@mateusasato, December 2020

He is just a marvel. Tons more of Mateus’s videos here. Also the pink Strat.

The Outline Trilogy by Rachel Cusk is a rich masterclass in writing, and simply an incredible pleasure. I found myself rereading her sentences not because I had to—neither reading comprehension nor speed is my strength—but because I wanted to. (If I “had three wishes” I would spend all of them in one shot on improving the above.) Her character studies astonish; her vignettes transport you so deeply away from the action — though not a lot happens in these novels unless you count heartily what takes place in the protagonist’s head — that you startle when she returns you back, just a page or two later. I love this writer. (Lots of reviews online; here’s The Guardian’s.) Oh, one other thing: She uses adverbs.

These paintings remind me a bit of ’80s Eric Fischl, and they are amazing. Follow him on IG at @marktennantart

This got a lot of attention. Rightly so.

Paul Ford, 2020

My hero.

tomosteen, December 2020

There are so many more like this on tomosteen’s channel. Check it out. Lego Masters Season 2 contestant?

@silasbusk, December 2020

Cardistry is pretty big on Instagram, but this one’s special. Lovely move. (I didn’t know if that was the proper term while editing. Then I found this.)
Pandemic Diaries
By: Debarati Ghosh
Tags: Pandemic, Pandemic Diaries, Year In Review

Its a year end journal :) Sitting in my comfort zone with hot ginger tea . I finally made up my mind to self reflect and contemplate this pandemic year — summarizing my successes, failures, and of course the new learnings.

So to put down -

A. What was the best thing I built/created?

The Best part was after a gap of 6 years as I was staying in a different location , I got a chance to be a part of every festival pertaining to different occasions celebrated with my family :) Be that rituals of makar Sankranti with traditional Bengali sweet delicacies(Puli pithe with jaggery and coconut ) or New year celebrations feasting with friends & family . Then Laddu- Gopal’s birthday and a chain of festivals starting with Ganpathi celebrations till year end ‘s biggest festivals — Durga puja and Diwali .

B. What I started doing different :)

For years, only getting limited to my new year’s resolution, I finally added meditation to my routine .I started practicing focused breathing after which I feel fresher and more focused on my work.

C. Did I learn any thing new ?

Due to the constant lockdown norms, we were forced to look at life in a new yet better way .We became accustomed to being more careful, washing our hands from time to time, wearing face masks, etc. Also, I got ample time to explore new skills, technologies, new hobbies, in short, this is evolving :). I completed a bunch of my pending certifications, got the opportunities to work on new platforms, scripting languages, etc.

D. My best comfort zone :)

Of Course I don’t like binge watching but I have spent countless weekends with Netflix and rarely amazon in my small comfort zone . Discovered hundreds of TV shows and seasons . Some of recent once are — Enola Holmes , Queen’s gambit , Unbelievable ,Locke and the Key , Social Dilemma , and many more



So to conclude the yearbook, past year was definitely a mixed bag. Lot of events, new experiences and a new outlook to life. Looking forward to the new year ahead :)

And what else ….

Sunlight in my room to kick out corona :)

Holi this year …pehchano kaun 😝😝😝

After spending couple of hours in kitchen — Lockdown special :) Fried rice and dum aloo with tamarind tang

Finally pizza at home — Pizza with thin aata crust

Diwali special dinner — Poori — Chole with chocolate burfi

Fluffy hot vanilla cake — my favorite :)
My Second Year of Teaching, in 20 Emojis
Tags: Year In Review

I could wax lyrical and throw out cliche after cliche on what this year has been to all of us. And all I can really say is true to me is that I’m proud I made it through, and achieved more than I imagined I could, despite the challenges, hurdles, and obstacles (all three) thrown our way. I finished my Master’s, completed the program, and came out the other end of some unexpected trauma (both global, and personal)— tougher, stronger, more loving and wholehearted than I ever thought possible. But these were not my achievements alone. If you’re reading this, it’s highly likely you were part of this journey — and if so, I am profoundly grateful for you.

I didn’t include my family and friends on this list, simply because they’re the operating system on which this whole year has run for me. Love has carried me through. Reconnecting in the disconnect with friends, old and new, creating new routines and rituals with some of the most precious treasures of humans anyone could ever ask for. Twitter friends who have become IRL close friends and family, and others providing endless bants on the interwebs. My students, my colleagues, my fellow-fellows… humanity prevails and I’m grateful.

So, team, thank you for being on this ride with me. Here’s to 2021, and the surprising, poignant, funny, lovely, inspiring, affirming things that get us through it. With one of my all-time favourites: 💞
Stories by Michael Patrick Welch, 2020
By: Famous People I Have Met
Tags: Year End Lists, National Review, 2020, Famous People, Year In Review

Since the pandemic, I have been making and delivering gourmet seafood dishes for money, instead of begging magazines to let me write what I wanna write.

I published around 170 separate pieces of writing this year.

1. Before beginning my Famous People I Have Met series, I worked for several years compiling memories and lists. In January 2020, I finally took up the challenge of writing 140 essays about the 140 famous musicians, actors, and politicians I’d met. A couple weeks into it, George Floyd was killed, and writing about famous people felt like the silliest thing in the world I could be doing. Still, I trudged forward, committed to the challenge. Then the pandemic started and it seemed even sillier. But like doing pushups in a rainstorm, FPIHM remained a challenge for me to write every single day, and finish all 140 stories. By May, I’d written the equivalent of a book. Many of the stories turned out very good. Many people read them, and some of them went crazy viral. The complete list of famous names can be found HERE, so you can pick the ones that interest you.

2. I got so tired of begging big magazines to trust me to write for them, that I sort of stopped asking. But The National Review did contact me and commission me to write this piece about Hurricane Laura decimating Lake Charles, LA.

3. 64 Parishes published this piece about a young New Orleans artist who, inspired by his grandfather, created a plastic Mardi Gras Indian action figure.

4. I was lucky enough to hook up with the local website Bayou Brief, where I’ve kinda been allowed to publish whatever I like — four stories so far — including New Orleans’s very first obituary for famous publishing icon, Gypsy Lou Webb.

5. You never wanna write your friend’s obituary, but I was honored to pen this love letter to my departed buddy, guitarist and videographer Geoff Douville. I cried the whole time writing this, but it felt good to write, because I meant every word.

6. Louisiana Weekly let me write about the state releasing non-native rainbow trout into New Orleans ponds.

7. I wrote nine reviews for the website Book and Film Globe, including breakdowns of the movie Wendy my daughter starred in, the movie Cut Throat City my man MC Gregory helped produce, and the TV show #BlackAF, for which my girl Helen Krieger wrote. But I mostly wrote reviews of stand-up comedy specials (including Louis CK live in New Orleans), which I feel are undeniably excellent.

8. I published a few other stray, high-quality essays at Medium, after I couldn’t find other homes for them.
2020: The Shityear (Go Tesla)
By: Max Cantor
Tags: Finance And Banking, Wall Street, Truth And Life, 2020, Year In Review

I have not made a Christmas Shopping Holiday List post this year (If you’re interested in reading last years posts, go here for 2019, 2018, 2017 and 2016 X2). There always are interesting things to buy, for sure. Examples: a 2-person far infrared sauna, or Cuccio Natural Milk & Honey Cuticle Revitalizing Oil. On this blog I’m not promoting mindless consumption. That’s your wife ‘s job, if you have one.

2020 has been a horrible year for most people. Working people, that is. With oligarchs…that’s a different story. They gorge and gaggle on on their fat-cow munchies.

The markets have performed surprisingly well (the markets don’t care how many people die of Covid, people), and nothing bested Tesla. Tesla bulls are in haven. Since 2018, Tesla has surged some 1,276%. [Still] The most-shorted stock in history, Tesla is now the 6th biggest company in the U.S. It was added to the S&P 500 Index on Dec. 21.

“Tesla (ticker: TSLA) is only the sixth company to reach that milestone[over $600 Bn] in U.S. markets recently, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The others are Amazon.com (AMZN), Facebook (FB), Apple (AAPL), Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) and Microsoft (MFST)”-Barrons

“Elon Musk owns 193.3 million Tesla shares, representing 20.7% of total shares outstanding, according to a 13G filing for the period ending December 31, 2019.” S-1 Filing

Other than Tesla, of course we know food taxi companies like DoorDash as well as apartment taxicabs Airbnb did extremely well this year.

There were other developments in 2020 we have addressed here such as the SPAC Goldrush.

On this blog, however, we don’t write market updates or research.

My focus is bringing forth the knowledge and fortitude rulers hide from their minions. Restoring masculinity and the virtue of the Paterfamilias.
2020 is turning out to be a badly scripted Hollywood movie
By: Sambit Satpathy
Tags: Hollywood, 2020, Coronavirus, Earthquake, Year In Review

Image Credit: Markus Winkler (Pexels)

2020 is turning out to be something no one would have expected in their wildest dreams. Every time you feel things can’t get any worse, life throws you a curveball. Most of us thought the Coronavirus was the worst that could happen this year. But then you come across a host of weird incidents across the globe that add to the suffering. It almost feels like 2020 is a Hollywood movie scripted by a writer who hates his job.

This ongoing movie doesn’t seem to have any budget constraints, and each scene is just bigger and unimaginably weird. This Coronavirus pandemic seems inspired by the movie Contagion. If you watch the 2011 movie now, it feels eerily real and relatable. At this point all we can do is hope for some real-life Dr. Ally Hextall to find us a vaccine that works.

If the virus wasn’t enough, a host of natural disasters have hit different regions since the beginning of the year. The earthquakes in Turkey and Puerto Rico, floods in Indonesia, the storms in America, and the Ampham cyclone in India come to mind. The level of destruction can put Hollywood movies like 2012 or San Andreas to shame.

On top of all these, there have been a few incidents that are just weird. Many places in India have had to deal with a swarm of locusts that eat and destroy everything in their path.

Recently, another incident occurred in India that is as hilarious as potentially dangerous. Monkeys mobbed a health worker in Meerut, and made off with blood samples from Coronavirus tests. Fortunately for the local people though, the samples were recovered without any damages. Is it only me or do these incidents also remind you of the movie Jumanji?

At this rate it is impossible to predict what could happen next. But if we are taking inspiration from Hollywood, it wouldn’t be too far fetched to expect an alien attack, would it?. Your move 2020.
Peter Andre admits he’s had racism ‘thrown at him’ for years
By: Sarfraz Qamar
Tags: Admits, Racism, Peter, Thrown, Year In Review

Peter Andre has opened up in regards to the racism he has confronted through the years amid the Black Lives Matter motion.

The singer backed Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid after they grilled lawyer Earl Grey on Good Morning Britain.

Early Grey is defending Minnesota police officer Thomas Lane after he was charged in relation to the homicide of George Floyd.

What did Peter Andre say about racism?

Sharing a clip of the interview, Peter wrote on Instagram, “Each my mother and father are Greek and we had racism thrown at us left proper and centre for years.

“Whenever you see or expertise racism. Whenever you see it occur to folks over and over.

“Whenever you see what occurred to George Floyd, you’ll be able to’t simply sit again and say nothing. It’s not proper, it by no means has been. #endracism #blacklivesmatter.”

Pete is of Greek first rate and lived in London till the age of six, when his household moved to the Gold Coast in Australia.

He added, “Seeing this man smirk and smile made me so mad. Change is coming although.

“Now that individuals can lastly movie these atrocities, signifies that we’re lastly waking up and seeing what has been taking place for years.

“Racism has been rife for a whole bunch and 1000’s of years in opposition to many cultures and races.

“What’s infuriating although is when folks nearly disregard what’s being protested and are available again with ‘All Lives matter’.

“Nobody ever questioned that. However for all lives to matter signifies that BLACK LIVES MATTER. Oh man.. very unhappy occasions.”

Presenter Piers had been left livid when the lawyer stormed out of the dwell interview on GMB.

After being questioned by Piers on why his shopper ‘didn’t shield’ George Floyd, the interview grew to become heated and Earl angrily mentioned, “Should you suppose I’m going to sit down right here and take heed to you discuss dangerous about my shopper, I’m not listening to that.

“Should you had informed me that an hour in the past after I did agree to remain up, I’d haven’t agreed to it,’ earlier than slamming down his laptop computer and ending the interview.
I thought I have forever.
By: Muthia S W
Tags: Grief, Love Letters, Friendship, Love

“Might, when you have your passage blocked, all you have to do is knock.”

I thought I have forever.

Nothing could have prepared me for losing a battle I didn’t see coming. Nothing could have prepared me for hurting so much, upon losing someone I have no blood relation with.

You used to call me “Mighty”. It’s a mockery, really, I used to set my Friendster name to “Mighty Uty”. It’s so corny, you always remind me of that. You even saved my contact details as that name. I used to be so annoyed, but right now I would move mountains to even get my phone flashes your name in the notifications once again. I would move mountains to understand where and when you’re hurting, when you need me even when you don’t let me know. I would move mountains for the world to know how true, genuine, and amazing you are.

I thought I have forever.

I thought I can always call you later, I can see you when things get better. I used to share to you spots we can visit, coffee shops we can try and places we can go. We have dreams to see movies you create someday, me clapping the loudest when they call out your name to the stage, while filming you like a proud Asian mom. But right now I can look up to the bright sky of March every time I think of you, or maybe I’d go to those places we have always wanted to go. I know you’d come around and make fun of me for browsing the menu before we get there. Hey, I always come prepared, don’t blame me.

I thought I have forever.

Just now I realize, here are the things I don’t tell you enough: 1.) I need you always. I don’t need a lot of people to retain my sanity, but I do need you. You are always needed and loved, and expected even in places you have never set foot on; 2.) I am always here for you. I never seek for only sunshine without expecting your thunderstorms. Your burdens are mine to carry, too, for as long as you would have me. Even if it’s 3AM and you just want to talk, I will listen and put your insecurities to sleep; 3.) You deserve the world. With the way you give the world to your loved ones, I can only wish to give you the same. You deserve the world that is kinder to you, and I hope we have given you that; 4.) I love you. Of all people, you know how hopeless romantic I am, including to you. Even then, I wish I can tell you that everyday.

I thought I have forever.

I don’t. But while I’m here, I will spend the rest of my life persevering the life lessons you have taught me. I will continue to love life the way you taught me to, to celebrate small wins even if it’s just a walk to the nearest convenience store while the sky is clear and you’re breathing just fine, or to help cooking dinner with your parents. And most importantly, I will listen more. I will keep your selflessness remains intact through my flawed being, hoping I can be the light the way you are to the people around you.

Forever, my sweet boy. Sayangnya ibu, mataharinya ibu..

My best friend, my mirror, my way back home. I love you, and I’ll treasure you forever.

Rest easy, Bi.

M
#TheWordsUnwritten: Tell Someone How to Love You
By: Aujha Aye
Tags: Love Letters, Thewordsunwritten, Writing, Love, Writing Prompts

Photo courtesy of ZRo Productions

When I was 22 I started a tradition giving each year of my life a theme, accompanied with a list of goals to accomplish during that rotation around the sun. I entered my 26th year back in June and truly felt like that was the gateway to the end of what I (once poked fun at but with my whole, entire soul believe in) believe to be my quarter-life crisis. This time around, the theme is “The Get Right” which entails getting back to doing the things I enjoy and living a life I love.

Writing, is my first love and my, my, my, how I have strayed. Synchronistically, because I do not believe in coincidence, one of my best friends, Zina Rose of ZRo Productions, has created a daily writing challenge for the month of January. When [re]forming [new] habits, it can be a a tad bit rocky in the beginning. I do feel that this challenge is Divinely timed, as I take great pride in supporting my friends in their creative endeavors, so there was no question that I would be a participant. Each day Z sends out a prompt to the group she created for this challenge on Instagram and each day I have actually been putting pen to paper. If you’re interested in learning more or joining #TheWordsUnwritten daily writing challenge, find Zina on Instagram.

*****

Please, stay.

Please don’t ever forget why I make you smile, or the the sense of belonging you feel when your arms are wrapped around me. Don’t ever stop sharing your random thoughts, I know you mean to pick my brain. Always be the most authentic version of yourself and leave expressions of your soul around our space as Divine decorations, please remain a work of art. Please encourage me to express myself just as freely as you and acknowledge my efforts to share my essence. Please receive these efforts with love and return them with the same notion.

Please don’t ever change your heat but when you decide to grow and shift your perspective, please keep me in the loop. And if ever your mind should weigh heavy on your heart, please let me console you. I think it’s important for me to know that my efforts are well received so, please let me love you. Please, just be…comfortable in my presence. Fell free to laugh, feel free to cry, feel free to think, and feel free to share all facets of you with me and —

Please, stay. Always remind me how you can make me smile, and how at ease my soul feels wrapped in the comfort of your arms.
Am I what you thought I would be?
By: Jyn Lynk
Tags: Love Letters, Poetry, Poetry Sunday, Love, Relationships

Photo by Julian Myles on Unsplash

Am I what you thought I would be;

Now that you know the real me, even though I am changing constantly?Evolving continuously

Am I what you thought I would be?

Do I feel how you thought I would feel when my hand caresses your face and chin hairs?

Did you know it would feel like that?

When you asked for a kiss, did you know my lips would be that soft?

And once inside, did you know it would feel so welcoming?

Like you had returned home after being gone for too long

Am I everything you thought I would be?

I must admit that in the past I’ve been very disappointed in who people turned out to be. Felt as though I had been deceived.

But you have not deceived me.

You have made me a better me in ways I can’t explain.

But some things make sense to me now, like why the older generation called dating “going steady.”

I needed a steady love. Correction, I need a steady love like the love you give.

Didn’t know such a love existed.

No emotional roller-coasters.

No annoying sudden dives down that leave my stomach all in knots due to the anxiety of not knowing what happens next.

And yet…

I had a bit of anxiety today because I’ve never been here before; and I don’t know what happens next.

But I’m looking forward to it and I’m grateful for you.
Meet Me Where We’ve Crossed Paths Before
By: Rhea Binoy
Tags: Love Letters, Writing, Date Night, Relationships, Sex

The day I meet you, I want to walk by and take away your breath because my smile is too much for your heart to take. You blush as you look down to hide it, while I look at you to let you know how cold it is outside, and the weather is doing justice to our meeting.

Meet me at ‘The Ganache’ , where we’ve crossed paths before but never talked, where they have the best blueberry cheesecake I have ever had in my life, watching you slurp the cranberry iced tea wondering how life has given us a hundred chances to be together. I draw us a doodle of the cafe and you, folding it and sliding it in the pocket of my coat.

I’ll walk you through the old part of the city, taking pictures of you amongst the walls that were a witness to some of the beautiful love stories, looking outside the window of the old architecture I smile at how you whispered, “Our love is like the old times…”

Slow dance with me in the dim lights, take a drink or two as you reveal your most well kept secrets, I note them down in my heart and mind only to love you more. While you cook us some dinner, I write you a poem of the things that we did today.

Let the night progress with you looking into my eyes, with your hands in my hair, sleeping into the night as the same cold air blows like the morning I met you. I tell you some of my well kept secrets, you smile and secretly hope you take it as a reason to love me more.
Close Your Eyes, I am Near.. The more I deny it, the more real it…
By: Salsa Wigati
Tags: Love Letters, Love, Life

Close Your Eyes, I am Near.

As the cold days come, as the season change, I thought I am free now. But my mind longs for you, my feet want to run to you. Why does it hurt so bad yet feel so good? Salsa Wigati Feb 20·2 min read

I am left with this big abyss in my chest, a rope strangling my neck. But why do I love it so much? Even when it’s destroying me. My mind is convinced that I need you to stay at the back of my mind for me to stay alive. Ironically, you’re that one thing that’s both killing me and keeping me alive.

Were you really the good one? Were you really supposed to be the right one for me? Because if not, why am I still longing for you? Why am I comparing every single person I met with you? How they don’t treat me like you do, how they don’t understand me as you do, how they don’t kiss me as you do.

Close your eyes, I am near.

Strangely, I remember every single thing you’ve told me. Every single word, vivid in my memories. Close your eyes, I am near; you told me every night as you wrap me in your arms and I don’t want to go to sleep because I don’t want to lose a second with you. Yes, I was that crazy about you and you were that crazy about me.

Are you happy now? I really hope you are. But I wish you’re here. Because my days are getting harder than they should be, the days are getting colder and I need your warmth, my mind is getting messier and I need you to ease me.

Do I miss you? Do I long for you? Those words are no longer something that can explain what I am feeling right now.

I just hope someday I will meet someone that won’t remind me of you, someone who will make me love them more than I loved you.
How To Know The Right Person To Marry!
By: Patrick Akpan
Tags: Love Letters, Marriage Counselling, Love And Sex, Love, Relationships

They are secret on how to know the right man or lady to marry, but many single men and women depend on saying “God will give me my own” but not playing their part so that God will do his own part. When I say playing your part you shouldn’t be confused, what I mean is that you should pray and ask God to show you the right direction to follow.

Know Who You Are:

I tell u if u don’t know who u are u can’t know who to marry, u need to understand yourself, understand that beauty is not in the face but in character.

Note: You don’t just meet someone today and go for marriage; we have four (4) levels of relationship which you need to undergo before you know whether he/she is the right person for you to be marrying.

These are;

1) Friendship: This is the level of relationship whereby you know the person by name.

2) Dating: This is the level you take a friend you already know.

3) Courtship: This is the level you begin to talk of marriage.

4) Marriage: This is a result of knowing the right person to marry.

They are ten (10) signs to know if you are in a bad relationship and that will be posted tomorrow.

Click and follow me in order to be notified whenever I create a new post.
Faded in my last song
By: Kalina Amairo
Tags: Love Letters, Love

How oft, when thou, my music, music play’st,

Upon that blessed wood whose motion sounds

With thy sweet fingers, when thou gently sway’st

The wiry concord that mine ear confounds,

There are two things that I value most. Two arts that are intertwined within my very soul. Music and literature. The former I enjoy, the latter I possess. And while they both are near and dear to my heart, without pure love they can’t exist.

Photo by Christiana Rivers on Unsplash

Do I envy those jacks that nimble leap

To kiss the tender inward of thy hand,

Whilst my poor lips, which should that harvest reap,

At the wood’s boldness by thee blushing stand.

I never wrote you a love letter. I fought with my very spirit, saying that I don’t deserve the right to write a love letter. That I don’t deserve to be loved, so I never let myself love someone that much, so it would hurt. I never believed in you, my love, never dreamed of your existence, never believed you will be there somewhere, staying… patiently waiting for me to be able to think, to be able to love, to be able to look for you.

To be so tickled, they would change their state

And situation with those dancing chips,

O’er whom thy fingers walk with gentle gait,

Making dead wood more blest than living lips.

My music taught me how to feel, my writings taught me how to dream. My heart was waiting in anticipation for you, my love. For you, to come and make me whole, to save me even from myself. To be my muse, my soul and all. To be my heartbeat, my control.

Since saucy jacks so happy are in this,

Give them thy fingers, me thy lips to kiss.

The dream is living still with me. The dream of being we. And if I dare to open my heart again, will you be there waiting for my hand?

Photo by Everton Vila on Unsplash

Inspired by Sonnet 128, William Shakespeare
12 Signs That Your Partner Is Madly In Love With You
Tags: Love Letters, Lovestory, Relationships Love Dating, Love, Relationships

12 Signs That Your Partner Is Madly In Love With You Hinaashraf Feb 20·2 min read

True love is not only felt, it’s visible to the naked eye. But if you are one of those people who look for proof in every situation and prefer facts to deductions, arm your eyes and pay attention to the following signs.

We at Bright Side analyzed a fair portion of couples in love and came up with a list of things that signal that your partner loves you a lot.

If you remember Joey from “Friends,” a popular series back in the 90’s, he never shared his food with anyone. Even if this person was a girl he really favored and went on a date with. In fact, he even did the opposite — never missed on a chance to eat the girl’s portion once she took off to the ladies’ room.

Apparently, there are many people out there who hate when someone takes a bite of their food, especially without asking first. Many men also feel weird about romantically feeding each other with a spoon or a fork. That’s why seeing your partner SHARING THEIR FOOD WITH YOU, offering you a taste of it, and never minding you eating from their plate in a public place or at home is a good sign of affection.

2. They leave you voice messages.

Online communication often takes the most of our time with other people these days. It’s a good alternative for those who can’t be together as much as they want but still feel the need to stay connected.

However, plain words on a screen don’t render the same meaning or have the warmth and intonation that were intended. They’re often impersonal. Voice messages, on the contrary, are not. They’re touching and they make distanced conversations so much better.

Next time you listen to a voice message your partner sent you, remember that they took time and effort to record it, sometimes having to find a quiet place all because they love you.

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Ejura: EJA NLA, A note to my 8-year old Daughter
By: Omotoyosi Bibire Salihu
Tags: Love Letters, Life Lessons, Tenacity, Never Give Up, Letters

Ejura: EJA NLA, A note to my 8-year old Daughter

Agbeke

Here are two pictures of our daughter Agbeke doing what she loves best to do (aside from honing her “get on your last nerve” ability).

When Ejura was born, she couldn’t dance to save her life (still cannot, in my now humble opinion)her dance steps never matched the music. So when she insisted on ballet dancing, we laughed and laughed.

But she persisted and persevered. And now she presents solo and is going to represent her school in competitions someday soon.

I have learned so many life lessons from this 8-year-old girl. Ejura never hears NO, she hears not now, come back later, Ejura never gives up…… chai. She is tenacious, she is a goal-getter, giving up on the things she really wants to do is an abomination.

Ejura has never let jeers or derisive laughter keep her from achieving her sometimes lofty ideas lol…..My daughter, the gold and silver medalist sprinter.

I am writing this in hopes that you Ejura Agbeke Ideraoluwa will one day read this tweet (Also mediuming it for safekeeping), and will be reminded (in case, life makes you forget) of what and whom you are at your core, at your basest…. My daughter, you are EJA NLA, a phenomenal woman….Obirin Ogun, never ever forget Ejura, Never forget.

We love you, baby
751 Miles
By: Ac Fischer
Tags: Love Letters, Romantic, Love, Long Distance, Life

“It’s clear to me now that I have been moving toward you and you toward me for a long time. Though neither of us was aware of the other before we met, there was a kind of mindless certainty bumming blithely along beneath our ignorance that ensured we would come together. Like two solitary birds flying the great prairies by celestial reckoning, all of these years and lifetimes we have been moving toward one another.”

~Robert James Waller

I have a lot of reasons not to do this. I wouldn’t be a decent person if I didn’t think about those things. I’ve done the arguing. I’ve weighed the pros and cons. I’ve considered every possible angle. But I simply can’t talk myself out of loving you. That’s something I can’t do. For me, that’s not a rational thought. I have to be with you!

My heart pounds when you’re away. I feel when I’m with you, it finally syncs up! You know what it’s like? To constantly be reminded there is something wrong with your heart? For years this has been my day. With every single beat…it’s just not quite right…Then when you crashed into my life, it pounded all the more. Like it said, “That’s it! Go and don’t look back!”

Even when you leave the room, it aches. But when I’m with you, I am calm. I can breathe easier. Things are still. Things are right. And I have to be in that place with you. I don’t think my heart itself can handle going on without you.

I know things won’t always be perfect. But I do think that my heart will be right. I don’t understand how that’s even possible. I never believed in this kind of love before. Isn’t that the one organ everyone is always trying to figure out? The heart?

I’m trying. I think I might have figured out my own. And when I look at you, it’s like seeing myself. I get you. You get me. We don’t even have to explain. And it’s so nice to be with someone to whom I don’t have to constantly explain myself.

My heart knows you somehow. Where did you come from? How did this all even happen? Will anyone else ever really understand? Does no one really understand this kind of thing until it happens to them? I don’t understand it. I just know it’s happening. And I can’t deny it or fight it. I just might die if I were to try.

I don’t know how, but I think our hearts seem to know each other . And it would be a shame to keep them apart. I can feel the pain of space between us. My heart won’t ever let me forget that you’re not near me.

Lexi

We weren’t looking for each other. We found each other though. Across the miles, we found each other. In spite of separate marriages, we found each other. Against all odds, we found each other.

To some, our story is a beautiful inspiration. To others, it’s a disgusting story of two broken people who ran away together. To us, it’s everything.

We so desperately want to tell the world our story but we always wonder if anyone could appreciate the beauty of it as we do. We don’t need permission or approval or even acceptance. We just want to be understood.

Do you have a story that’s been misunderstood? Send me an email, I’d love to hear it! acfischerpod@gmail.com
My Five Present Desires
Tags: Love Letters, Poetry, Poetry Sunday, Love, Relationships

My five present desires

are wrapped up in one,

you,

since last we said goodbye.

I need your heartbeat

and its unique rhythmic throb

upon my bosom’s rise and fall,

uniting us in perfect symphony

of the simple elegance of umbilical flow.

I need your face

for the way it illuminates my existence

brighter than ten Equator suns

against an endless placid ocean of sky

and the shadows of the great blue depths below.

I need your voice

and it’s sweet, sweet nectar

that causes my ears to salivate

and heart to drool in greedy wanting and longing

for more of your deliciousness.

I need your aroma,

the fragrance that’s distinctly yours,

satisfying my nostrils

with your beauty, your essence, and love,

that eliminates the odors of life’s carcasses and cares.

I need your touch

that steadies me when treading

on living’s rough terrains,

electrifying me,

directing me due North,

and uniting us soul to soul,

in an eternal Garden of Eden,

where no serpents can coil, and hide,

and reach, and bite, and poison.

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Wanton Love
By: Dating Advice For Men
Tags: Love Letters, Poem, Short Story, Poetry Sunday, Poetry On Medium

The world doesn’t wait for you to love someone.

Just as the universe doesn’t care if you die.

Nothing is fair in love and war or good or bad, but our perspective of experience make it so.

Ram Dass said death is like taking off too tight a shoe. If that’s so, I still don’t want to die until I know the love I perceive to be true for me.

If you seek you shall find, right?

I want to wear that shoe once.

Just once.

But okay, Ram, if I do die before I wear that shoe, I’ll still smile. If my plane goes down, I’ll try not to scream. I’ll shut my eyes and think of the love I do have:

My family.

My friends.

My old faithful Jack Russel dog.

My first love never had the foundation to last. I wasn’t ready. There is nothing to fear now. I will giggle and love everyone while the reaper or the cupid takes me. I don’t care about the silly differences we have — I love it all.

Rumi said, “Out beyond the ideas of right doing and wrong doing, there is a field. I will meet you there. It’s the world full of things to talk about.”

I want to talk to her. I sleep with one eye open watching for her. Waiting for her. I dream on the edge of the milky way stars giggling and eating cake with her. I sit on the precipice of black supernovas wanting to explore her — touch her skin, light a star and let my feet dangle into eternity.

Not all the time, no, I’m not a stalker, but I can admit my desire can turn into wanton love.

We all want to know what is real… I sure do.

Other days, I just want to lay in the field and talk and spin my fingers across the heavenly spools of truth.

I want to begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life. — Seneca

I am scared to find her, to go back to the vulnerable place that hurt me long ago. But dragons can be defeated, and mountains can be climbed, but only if you are willing to show up and go back to the place you think you can’t.

Is this how you find real love?

Let’s meet in field and talk about it there.
LOVE OFTEN STARTS UNDER THE GUISE OF A WEAKNESS
By: Sam Sucre Zoe
Tags: Love Letters, Love Yourself, Lovestory, Love And Sex, Love

Love often starts under the guise of a weakness.

Two victims playing hide and seek in the darkness of a bond. The broken girl needing healing, the pompous boy needing attention.

Sometimes we are careful not to damage further, yet love is a sacrifice. And what is a sacrifice without pain, what is pain without damage?

The occasional waves of laughter create an illusion of satisfaction. The cuddle before the tears, the kisses after the tears, the tears before the heartbreak, the coldness after the heartbreak.

There is a science to all these, I call it the emotional law of gravity. For every rising blissful emotion, there is a fall into emptiness, a regret, no matter how momentary.

I can’t say I’ve seen it all, but in all the love stories no matter how complexly woven, there are always two outcomes;

The lovers that go their separate ways, or the lovers that break in separate ways.

There is always going to be a pain in love, the “how much dollar do I have to make to keep you from leaving”, the “You don’t respect my emotions anymore”.

You are going to break. Love would break you in ways you don’t yet know.

It is beautiful, but that’s not to say you won’t wake up in the middle of the night cuddling your pillow, maintaining your demons, fighting for peace, hungry for silence.

What is the goal? The goal is to love yourself enough, to break in a million ways, and still find happiness from the broken pieces of you that remain.

You won’t find this kind of happiness in someone else, you find it in yourself!!!
I Wish To Live Forever!
By: Medusa Gorgon
Tags: Love Letters, Love, Journal, Relationships, Heartbreak

Let my name bring a small smile to you.

THE DANCE OF LOVE by Roberta Maddalena

I walk these empty trails, the coldness in the air stand still, and I pull the cardigan a little closer to me in the hope it will provide me with some warmth; he did. But I was growing colder and colder.

I remembered his arms caging me, pulling me closer until there was no space for me to breathe. I still recall the smell of his fresh shampoo lingering on the pillows, the creases at the corners of the bedsheet, and the duvet half lying on the floor while we snuggle at another corner of the bed.

He laughed a little heartier, smiled with eyes, and talked like a kid on Christmas. It was the very first time he had unknowingly shown me the little boy he hid under the tough man’s skin — the little boy who had his own moments. Did I wonder how many people have seen him like this? Was I jealous?

He told me stories, he fed the writer me in well, which was why I liked him a little more than Shakespeare or Austen.

While I grew up reading them, I will die writing him.

He may not know, but I burn candles all night, recalling moments and trying to draw him in words. I spend suns trying to paint him in the fitting phrases, but…

…I have failed. I have been unable to guise him in words. How could I even think about measuring him with few alphabetic words when he is bigger than life itself?

I wish Shakespeare would have been alive. Would he have been able to put him in the right words? Would he have done justice to him? I wonder!

The cold is seeping through my skin steadily, the air has started to grow colder, the night will be lengthier once again, and I would be wide awake, counting the sheep. I am running out of words, but someone said I am running out of context to fill these sheets. I don’t know which one is truer and which one is an illusion.

Our story has come to an end, the chapter has closed or so, the brain fools my heart. We may have decided to walk on our separates path now; I hope for us to cross paths someday, stop by on the first rain, or remember each other on the wintery nights. Whenever he hears my name, I just wish it will bring a soft smile to his face.