Let's go fly a kite.

I want to fly kites with you.

The world of butterflies.

We stayed up talking that night talking about the world we could make. It would be warm and safe and only wonderful things would ever happen. We would live in rainbow trees. No one would ever be hungry or cold. There would be water for everyone and no more wars.

It will only ever rain the kind of rain you can dance in. There will only ever be snow that's fun to play in. And it will vanish the moment you need it to be sunflower warm.

"And whenever anyone tries to hurt someone else, they'll just vanish in a magic moment and turn into a butterfly," I added.

"A butterfly?"

"Yes," I said. "Butterflies don't hurt anyone. They will fly away and be enchanting and live with flowers."

"Yes," she said, and thought for a minute. We were quiet. And then she sighed and she shook her head and she said, "It would be a world of butterflies."

There for you.

I wish I was there to hold your hand through this.

That's all.

Be safe.

The beauty and the hurt.

The truth is, sometimes nothing is beautiful and everything hurts. But the truth is also that these moments will pass. It's just hard to live through them.

The truth is, there is no place where everything is beautiful and nothing hurts.

But there are moments where everything is beautiful and nothing hurts. And those are the moments we hold onto. Those are the moments we live for.

Have a cup of cheer.

Do your friends cheer you up when you ask them to?

Sometimes I need cheering up. So I ask my friends to tell me jokes or funny anecdotes or stories. And mostly, they'll always tell me something that makes me smile. I hope you have that in your life.

Have a cup of cheer.

The allergies.

You know what? I hope you never have to experience allergies. It really is very unpleasant. I'd rather have the flu, because at least that doesn't last for months on end.

So yes, I hope you're fortunate enough to never experience allergies.

The strong.

I know you're strong. I just wish you didn't have to be so strong all the time. I wish you didn't have all these obstacles and challenges and disasters in your life that make you have to always stay so strong.

I wish I could take all of that away, and that the rest of your life would be easy.

The secrets.

Sometimes it's really difficult to say I do not want to talk about it.

I hope you're strong enough to say it when you need to.

I'm glad you're here.

I hope you have someone in your life who tells you, "I'm glad you were born. I'm glad you're in the world. I'm glad to know you."

I'm glad you're here.

The worst of times.

Some things that are broken can't be mended. And it hurts. Sometimes goodbyes are forever. Sometimes houses burn to the ground and nothing is left but ashes. Sometimes storms come and they can't be weathered, and everything is gone. Sometimes there's nowhere to turn, and no one who cares.

I hope you hold onto hope, even in the worst of times. I love you.

I think of you.

I think of you when I hear stories being read aloud.

I think of you when I see someone laughing. And someone crying.

I think of you when I see bicycles. I think of you when I see kites flying.

I think of you when I see libraries. And bookstores.

I think of you when I hear certain songs.

I think of you when I'm happy. I think of you when I'm sad.

I think of you a lot.

Disney songs.

Remember when we sang Disney songs at the top of our lungs when we went hiking? Yeah, me too. That was a good day.

Give away books.

Never lend books. Give them away. Share the love.

The keys.

I hope you don't lose your keys. I hate when that happens. I love you!

Everyone has a story.

Think about how many people you interact with on a daily basis. Every single one of them is a real, live person, with hopes and fears, with dreams, and with secrets. Even when people seem to be mean or angry, and you just want to throw a custard pie in their face, remember that they might just be having a terrible day.

You never know what's going on in someone's life.

Remember, everyone has a story.

For someone you love.

Today's letter is a quote from a book called Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.

I hope one day you have the experience of doing something you don't understand for someone you love.

Because I hope that for you.

Toothpaste.

I hope you never have to steal toothpaste. Or food, or shoes, or anything. I hope you always have the things you need.

I love you.

The three words.

I believe you.

Live lightly.

Learn to laugh at yourself. Especially when you feel the least like laughing.

An hour late and a dollar short.

Sometimes it will seem like you're always coming up an hour late and a dollar short. Those moments will pass. Hold onto the times that matter. And never lose hope.

To not get hurt.

To try to not get hurt is to try to not live.

The different.

I'd rather be different.

Better than a letter.

I'm sending you a hug today, instead of a letter.

You're my home.

I was trying to write a letter to you telling you how much you meant to me. I couldn't find the right words. I tried again, and this is what I wrote:

There are books I've read because you read them. There are songs I love because you listen to them. There are places I want to visit because you've been there.

I feel safe when you're singing. I feel happy when you're holding my hand. I miss you.

You're the one I think of when I think, "I want to go home."

I'm so glad we met.

Thank you for choosing to be here, in this place at the same time that I chose to be here in this place. It startles me how easily we could have missed each other. I'm so glad we met.

My life is very different because you're in it.

I think you're amazing.

I know that all that I say to you has probably been said better by someone else. But I want you to know that I think you're amazing and I'm glad to have been lucky enough to be part of your story.

I will never forget you. Stay wonderful.

The challenges.

Challenge yourself. Accept tasks you know you'll have to work hard to accomplish. Look at things in new ways.

Try to get to know people you don't think you'll get along with; and try to become friends with them.

Learn about something you're scared of, or something that makes you uncomfortable. Learn as much as you can about the perspective that you believe is wrong.

Challenge yourself; don't sit comfortably back in your cozy life with cozy values and cozy songs. Listen to music genres that you don't like. Try new foods. Go somewhere you're scared of going.

See how much you'll learn and grow. Challenges make life fun and fascinating.

I hope your life is fantastic.

And so, to everyone I interact with, every day, I tell them, with sincerity in my voice, "I hope that your day is spectacular." And I mean everyone. The person who rings up my groceries, the customer service representative, the bus driver, the postal worker, the librarian. I thank them, and tell them that I hope, truly hope, that their day is wonderful. Because I really do hope for that.

I hope your life is spectacular.

The music we can make.

Let's make music that dances.

Connect the stars.

I name my own constellations. Why remember someone else's interpretation of the stars, when you can make your own?

My favorite is the Crooked Smile constellation.

There are no lines.

Color outside the lines.

See the unicorns.

We picked up sticks we found in the woods and pretended they were magic wands. We were sorcerers, battling our way across treacherous bridges, past trolls and dragons and all sorts of fearsome beasts and monsters.

And to grown-ups who might've seen us, we were just a few kids running around the grass and through the trees.

To a grown-up, the world is a place where there are no unicorns. A tree is a tree, a house is a house.

To a child, the world is infinite opportunities. A tree could be alive, with fairies living in it, or the portal to another land. A house could be a castle, or a starship, or anything at all. And of course there are unicorns.

See the unicorns in the world. And never stop seeing, never stop make-believing.

New and wonderful.

Don't let fear keep you from learning something new and wonderful.

The soul friends.

The word means "soul friend." It's deeper than friendship. But forget the Hollywood "soulmate," "true love" garbage. No, this is a "soul friend."

A friend with whom you share your soul.

Do you have any friends like that?

The mermaid and the princess.

Once upon a time there was a mermaid who wanted to walk on two legs into the world. And so she did, and she lived with a human princess who gave her a home and holidays and loved her very much.

But the mermaid didn't want to be merely human. She wanted to return to her home in the sea, she wanted to be a mermaid again. No love was worth giving up her home.

But the human princess loved the mermaid so much, that it broke her heart when she found the note the mermaid had left. So the human princess found a sorcerer who turned her into a mermaid too. And she followed her beloved mermaid into the sea.

And they lived happily ever after.

The wishes we make.

Wish on everything. Wish on stars, and butterflies. Wish on snowflakes and falling autumn leaves. The first buds of spring, the first summer storm. Wish on lightning, wish on candles.

Make a wish.

Without words.

We found each other's eyes and smiled, remembering, together, without words.

The right words.

I wish we would always have the right words to say. I wish our fears and insecurities would stop getting in the way.

The prince and the lonely giant.

There once was an ugly giant was very lonely. He had avoided being around people for a long time, because people were afraid of things they didn't understand. They were afraid because the giant was so hideous in appearance, and looked so different from them. So people would, at best, make fun of him, and at worst, they would try to kill him.

So the giant lived on top of a mountain, all alone. He loved to make music. He played the piano and the cello. And he loved to read books. He also grew a garden and learned many delicious recipes.

A prince who wanted to be a hero, had heard that a vicious, murderous giant lived on that mountain. And he climbed the mountain to confront the beast. But instead of a fearsome, violent monster, he found an unfortunate-looking giant making the most enchanting music on a cello.

The prince saw that the ugly giant had a beautiful soul. And the prince and the giant became friends, and then best friends. And then they fell in love with each other and lived happily ever after.

Take a minute.

Take this time to smile. Take a minute to remember what makes it all worth it. Dance, breathe, laugh, run, hug.

The people who don't leave.

There are people who come into your life and never leave. You may never see them again, you might not even know their name. Or maybe you know their name, and their secrets, and their story, but you might not always be with them, or be able to see them again.

They might go away, or you might go away. But the people are still with you. The things they've said will remain; you'll still carry their voices. You'll have their smiles, and the remnant of a hug. These people do not leave.

They are still with you, and always will be.

The tomorrow.

It's ok. Tomorrow will still be here. The sun will rise and set. This is not the end of all things. Just breathe.

The bittersweet.

Let me hold your hand again. Let me hug you one last time. I want to remember this. I want to remember your face, and the shape of your hand. I want to remember the fabric of your clothes, and the way your hair falls. I want to remember every color in your eyes, and I want to remember the sound of your voice.

I don't want to go.

Home is right here.

"I want to go home."

What does that mean? Home. Is it a house, a physical building, of wood and plaster? Is it a place, a town, a geographical location with a longitude and latitude? Is it the people there, is it family?

Is it a season? Is it a sound, a smell, a type of tree? Is it certain types of food? Is it a particular song, or a type of music?

Home. Home is the places I feel safe. Home is the people I love. Home is you, but not just being with you. I'll take you with me wherever I go.

Home is right here, with me, always.

Turn the page.

To be born again, first you have to die.

Our time here is ending. It's over. And all that means is that there's a new beginning just waiting to happen. A fresh start, new adventures. New places to go, new friends to make, new worlds to save.

We're not closing the whole book; we're just turning this page.

All that matters.

Life is beautiful. You have more than you realize. You are luckier than you can ever understand. Give love, give, give, give. In the end, all that matters is the good impacts you've made. That's all. So forget yourself. Help others. Reach out. Make the world a better place while you're in it.

Listen: I miss you.

"I miss you," I keep saying. And even though you hear me say that, you are not listening.

I'm saying that I love you. I'm saying that I miss the way things were. I miss the beginning, I miss the middle parts. And I'm afraid of the end.

The falling.

It is ok to fall. You just have to remember to get back up.

You'll be right here.

I wondered where you went. And then I realized you were right where you said you'd be; right here, inside my heart.

The three trees.

Once, you told me, there were three trees. And one tree grew tall, tall, tall to the sky. It was far away from the other two trees, making friends with clouds. And one tree grew big around, stretching and taking up so much space that it would take a whole year to walk all the way around it.

The other tree grew to an average height, just tall enough to see far and wide, andit was an average length around, just wide enough around to be huggable, and had an average amount of limbs; just enough limbs to make it wonderful to climb. It wasn't taller or stronger or bigger than the others. It was an average tree, but it was the best tree.

You said: "Sometimes, just average, is more than enough. Sometimes 'just average' is perfect."

The flight.

And sometimes she just wanted to fly away into that blue forever.

...and sometimes, she wanted to stay in her tree.

The ephemeral.

Nothing is permanent. We only have the illusion of permanence. That's why it's so important to hold onto who we have in our lives, for as long as we have them.

The promises no one can make.

I wish I could tell you that you're safe now, that nothing bad will ever happen to you ever again. I wish I could promise that to you.

But I don't know that for certain. No one does. But, I really hope you're safe now. And I really hope that nothing bad will ever happen to you again.

Stay strong.

Hold on.

Hold on. Please, please hold on. You are so much more than all of these things. You are so much more than this. I know it hurts, but please, hold on.

There are too many goodbyes.

I wish we had more time. I wish we'd met a thousand years ago. But sometimes I wish we hadn't met at all.

What I'm trying to say is, I'm glad to have known you, but I hate that I have to let you go. There are too many goodbyes.

What I'm trying to say is, I'm going to miss you.

The sweet life.

Life is short, make it sweet.

The hundred lifetimes.

If I had a hundred lifetimes, I'd want to spend all of them with you.

The books that connect us.

Whenever I buy a used book, it makes me wonder. Who read this before me? How many people read this? Did the owner of this book let other people borrow it? What did they think about it? Did it reflect their lives in any way?

And then I wonder who else in my life may have read this, and how old they were, and how it impacted their life. We take away pieces of the things we read, and I wonder, for the people in my life, what those pieces are.

I want to know. Books connect us to each other.

The stories.

I hope you have people in your life who will tell you stories when you ask for them.

The success.

I hope you are met with success in all your endeavors.

The Sandman.

I hope the Sandman is kind to you. May your dreams be happy.

The safety mechanism.

We are so much more than all of our fears. But sometimes the fear keeps us safe, keeps us from making decisions that would hurt us. So I suppose, in this place, in this time, fear is the best safety mechanism we've got.

Think of some place or time.

I want to remember that day by the stream, on those rocks. I told you about my nightmares.

You told me, "Close your eyes." I closed my eyes. You told me, "Just listen." I heard the water rushing over the rocks, I heard peace. I heard the wind in the trees and the constant sound of the water. The sound of nothing bad ever happening.

I opened my eyes and you smiled and told me, "Think of that whenever you wake up from your nightmares."

I hope you never have bad dreams. I hope that whenever you wake up alone and afraid with no one there to comfort you, that you have a memory of a place or a time where you felt safe. And I hope then, that you aren't scared anymore.

Sweet dreams.

I will think no less of you.

And if you don't feel strong enough, I will think no less of you. No one can be so brave and so strong all the time.

I will think no less of you if you feel like you can't go on, if you're hurting too much. Just reach out, tell someone. Ask for help. No one will think less of you. I would think you're a hero, if you would reach out, and let someone in.

You're brave, but you don't have to go through this alone.

All is well.

I hope all is well in your world.

The strength in compassion.

You have to be able to stand before you can help others to their feet.

The people you meet.

Be kind to the people you meet.

The moments worth reliving.

I hope you have a day that is so wondrous, you just want to re-live it all over again without changing a thing.

All the answers you need.

All the answers you need are already within you.

Be kind to the world.

Help someone today. Be nice to everyone you meet. Be kind the world, it's the only one we have.

The place you were.

Come back here, to the place you once were, inside my heart.

Thunder dance.

It's such a beautiful storm. It's danger and magic and light. Can you hear the thunder song? Let's dance in the rain.

The people who share this space.

I wonder who saw this, on this day, and thought it was beautiful too. I wonder how time has changed this place, and what it looked like a hundred years ago, or a thousand years ago. Who was here? Who shared this place with me, across all that time?

I want to make up stories about the people who walked here, climbed the trees here. The people who shared this bench.

I bet they all played in the piles of leaves.

Only good kind wonderful things.

I love you. I really do. I hope you're always warm & safe & dry and that only good kind wonderful things ever happen to you for the rest of forever.

The home.

Home isn't a place. Home is love. It's a group of people who love each other.

We are so much more.

We are so much more than anything that has ever happened to us. We are more than our fears, than the hate, than any mistake. We choose who we are, and everyone can change.

You are not a lost cause, or beyond hope. No one ever is.

The story.

"Tell me a story," she said.

"About what?"

"It doesn't matter, as long as it ends with: And the two princesses lived happily ever after. The end."

The grow-up together friends.

I wish I'd grown up together with you. There's so much we missed out on in each other's lives.

Let's stay together now, so we can grow up together from this point on.

Peace.

Dear world,

Find peace.

The safe home.

Did anyone teach you to ride a bicycle when you were a kid? Did someone teach you how to whistle?

Did someone tell you stories? Did someone sing you lullabies? Did you have someone who would make you feel safe if you woke up from a nightmare as a child?

I hope, growing up, that you had a safe home, stories, and lullabies.

The reading.

I want to read to you. I want to be read to. Let's read to each other some time.

A new beginning means something has to end.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow, but I don't want it to ever actually get here. Because that means it will end, too, and I'm not looking forward to that part.

I hope that's what today and tomorrow are like for you, too.

You are more powerful than you know.

I know you've been hurt. But whatever happened has no power over you, except for the power that you give it. You are more powerful than anything that has ever happened to you.

The possible.

To change the world, you have to believe it is possible.

No, nothing will ever change when you keep saying, "We can't. It's impossible."

Let me tell you a secret. We can, and it is possible. The only obstacle we have to overcome is ourselves.

The unspoken.

We should say what we want to say. What we leave unspoken could change our lives. It's scary, I know. But say how you feel, say what you think.

What's the worst that can happen? So what if they don't feel the same way, or agree with what you're thinking. At least now, you know.

Life is too short not to say the things worth saying.

The songs we listen to.

I want to hear the song that you're listening to. I'd rather listen to one song, together with you, than have each one of us listen to a hundred different songs, and never ever meet.

We are the same.

We are the same, you and me. We all bleed, and have fears. We all dream. We all want love, and happiness, and safety. And we can be at peace with each other. Please, please, let's make it happen.

The simple life.

Let's hold hands, and fly kites, and skip through wildflowers.

Sometimes, I wish life could be that simple. Sometimes it can.

Be brave.

Most of us are too scared to say the things worth saying. What's holding us back? We only have so much time to say these things.

Be brave. Use your voice.

Learn to want exactly what you have.

I read a story, a parable once, and I'm going to relay it to you.

I was walking past a homeless man one day, who had nothing to his name save for the clothes on his back and the cane in his hand.
I stood in front of him, he was sitting on the ground, and I asked him, "How can I help you? Is there anything I can do for you?"
"Yes," he said. "You can move, please. You're blocking the sun."

Learn to want exactly what you have, and you will never be unhappy.

This is true.

Why is it that the bad stuff is so much easier to believe? You're beautiful. You have such a beautiful soul, and you can do such wonderful things in this world. You're stronger than you know.

I want to write this in the clouds and with the stars and on every sign you pass by every day. And one day, I hope you understand that this is true.

The dance floor.

Do something that you wouldn't normally do today. Be courageous, and get out there on the dance floor.

I'm glad you're in the world.

Tell the people you care about how much they mean to you, and how glad you are that they are in your life. It may mean more to them than you will ever know.

Just so you know, I'm glad you're in the world.

The safe world.

I wish for us to never be afraid. It isn't that I wish we were strong, or wish we were brave all the time. I just wish we didn't have anything to be afraid of. I wish this world to be safe for everyone.

The good things we don't notice.

It's so easy to notice the bad things. It's so easy to point out all that's going wrong. Why is it so easy to miss all the good stuff?

Learn to pay attention to all that is amazing in your life. Appreciate all that you are fortunate enough to have. You are so lucky. Know it.

I challenge you to pay attention to only the good things, even for just one week, one hour, one day.

The safety net.

Don't fall. Refuse to fall. But if you must fall, I hope you have a safety net to catch you.

I hope you are happy.

I hope you are happy right now, in this moment. I hope you are spending time with the people you love.

Let's walk together.

I want to challenge you to share your troubles. You don't have to carry them alone. Open up. Talk to someone. Reach out. Get help. There is a whole world out there, and yes the whole world has troubles. But if we share them, we can learn from each other, help one another.

We don't have to face these battles alone. We don't have to go through this all alone. Let's help each other. Let's walk together.

You are more rich than you know.

Do you want to know how rich you are? Just count all of the things you have that money can't buy.