I am an assistant principal in a middle school (grades 6-8). When I have to search a student's cell phone, I often get sick to my stomach at what I find. It gets worse and worse every year.
"While you are not her Savior, and shouldn’t carry that burden around, you are there to protect her. She has one knight in shining armor with skin on in this world. You."
"Did someone open a card under his name? The next day, the day I called that hotel room and heard his voice, his voice 1,000 miles away, and then heard her voice in the background, that was the day I broke."
"People ask you if you’re doing okay. You shrug it off, make a joke, lighten the situation any way you can. You say that you’re fine, and maybe you are. But I thought I would say the things swimming inside my brain anyhow."
"After all, there’s something wonderful about first dates, initial kisses, eager touches, and the anticipation of unknown emotions. There are so many people who will trade the 'boring' regularity and routine of a long-term relationship because they miss the newness of a budding romance."
"Suddenly I felt my phone vibrate within my pocket, unexpectedly I realized, for not many people contacted me at such an early hour. I pulled out the cell and was surprised to see a message from my spouse. He must not have gone back to sleep after I left..."
"I like to remind myself that if we are fighting, we are at least still caring about the marriage... So how do we communicate kinder, even when we feel upset?"