I’ve spent a great deal of energy the last bit pondering what love cannot do. Luckily, as a born optimist, we ponder what love actually CAN do as well as the negative cannot. FYI Gen Y or whatever you are, cannot is one word not two. Point: Love cannot improve someone else’s grammar or spelling. Interesting enough, this brings up something I have also been spinning about in this wack brain: spelling and grammar.

I am making an inspiration wall in my bedroom for anyone who doesn’t check Facebook. I intentionally put up quotes with misspellings or “u” instead of “you.” Why? Because as I prepared it I realize I judge people pretty harshly on their use of the English language. And it hit me all at once: am I gonna miss the message by focusing on a missing letter? That might sound trivial but hardcore grammar nazis understand. Yes, I have missed whatever point people were trying to make (or worse, felt smarter and better) because they spelled something wrong, did a your/you’re, can not/cannot….. How sad is that?

See, I came to find value in myself growing up in being smart. Learning easily, quickly, and excelling in school. My brother was athletic and artistic. I was not. I had to find something and that’s just how it came to be in my head. There were plenty people smarter than me in school, but I ranked really high when I gave it minimal effort. Long story lengthened, that’s where I placed my “strengths” and fundamentals of who I was came to be on how super smart I was!

This served me well for quite some time! Career advancement? Mastered. But like I said, it also led to a certain degree of snobbyness. (Does anyone see what I did there?!!!) Anywho, it was unconscious and really, seriously hit me last week. Was I really going to judge someone on their writing to make me feel better about who I was??? No. As soon as it hit me I knew I needed to pay attention to this flaw. It’s amazing.

So what love CAN do is reach somebody and deliver a message they wanted/needed to hear or reinforce in their head. I must master the lesson but love delivered it. What love CAN do is humble someone and make them appreciate things. What love CAN do is take the tiny cracks in people and fill it with something valuable and good. What love CAN do is remind you we’re on the same journey–like it/believe it or not–and you don’t ever have to be alone. What love CAN do is make you smile when you are tired and calm you down so that you can make the best decision yourself. These things I witnessed and lived firsthand. I shall try to find more of what love CAN do today. <– now watch the test I'm about to get!!!