“I had always thought of relationships as 50/50 propositions. You each give. And you each take. You try to make it as equal as possible. Right? WRONG.”
Marriage Is Not About Giving 50/50
‘Something wrong, dear?’ The price of a turkey was more expensive than she thought. She laid out her coupons, anxiously watching the numbers on the register climb.’: Man recalls Thanksgiving act of kindness
“She counted her money, paused, and let out a heavy sigh. She was $4.00 short. The manager lied, ‘Susan, did you not see the sales signs we put out today? Everyone who buys a fresh turkey gets a free pumpkin pie. Take that pie off her bill, please.'”
‘The manager said, ‘Could you please re-tell me your card number?’ I thought about the disrespect I’d seen this past week.’: Mom advocates for kindness after post office visit
“I was in my local post office sending a package. I realized our soup was missing. USPS. I think I’ll survive without mail for a few days.”
‘Every family has their THING. But, whether or not your family has it figured out, I hope you’ll consider a small piece of advice.’: Woman encourages others to make this their family’s ‘thing’
“Some families are rich as sin and sponsor all of the things and host all of the parties. Some families have kids on the football team. Some families raise geniuses who are writing cancer grants by the age of 16. Some families have 15 kids whose names begin with the same letter. Some families have three-year-olds who play piano and can speak three languages.”
‘I started to compare her to the other two and blame myself. Somehow, I was responsible.’: Mom talks importance of not comparing your children to others
“I did my best to breastfeed, and I gave them formula. I did my best to socialize them and teach them, and I let them watch TV and play on their iPads. By my third, I stopped caring.”
‘I need all you who lay awake at 2 a.m. to listen up. You’re honest ‘YOUness’ comes out in all the ways. That honesty is a gift.’: Woman says being ‘honestly you’ is needed in our world
“I felt like I had a connection with an elderly couple walking their dog on the side of the road. So, of course, I yelled. ‘Who was that?’ the kids asked. ‘I have no idea.’ They were both mortified. I realize I’ve said something weird, but they can’t see my flaming cheeks while I’m wearing a mask.”
‘I gently patted my son’s back when I heard a crackling, wheezing sound. ‘Something’s wrong, I just know it,’ I told my husband.’: Mom candidly shares journey with parenting PTSD
“I cried to the nurse on the hotline, ‘It sounds like he has fluid in his chest.’ I would sit nursing my son, crying endlessly in that rocking chair. Every breath my son took heightened my already over-the-top anxiety attack. I knew it wasn’t just anxiety. It was something more. This was the start of so many triggers.”
‘You ghosted me when my husband died. You told me I was thinking too much about myself.’: Widow hurt by friends who abandoned her and broke promises
“I don’t know why you made promises and didn’t follow through. I needed my friend… but you were gone.”
‘Lonnie said, ‘This is all for you.’ Now any time he sees a truck, he tells me about his buddy, Lonnie.’: Neighborhood in tears after recycling worker’s act of kindness for little boy
“‘I promise when this pandemic is over, I’m going to let you ride in my truck.’ I told Lonnie we were 2 weeks away from moving, and we were so disappointed. As we were hurrying down the hallway, we heard the truck beep the horn, and I knew they could only be honking for Charles. All the neighbors had huge smiles on their faces and tears in their eyes.”
‘Everything I set out to do in my career was pointless. I held this innocent baby, and I knew there was hope.’: Police officer shares touching encounter that ‘restored’ his purpose
“‘That’s it right there! That’s what I like to see.’ Me interacting as a human and not a police officer, is what the community wants to see. I hadn’t felt that much peace in a long time.”
