I get by with a little help from my friends

There's not a lot I know for sure, but I do know that my life is made infinitely better by the people I am fortunate enough to spend it with. There seems to be no real rhyme or reason in life but, I am convinced, to love. Our tangible worlds are just that, so it seems that the only infallible possession we have is love. Now, you may argue that people lose love all the time; they fall out of love, they die, but I would have to disagree. Love lives in our hearts always. Sometimes, relationships change and that love changes, but it's always there. We love because that is what we are made to do.

I am fortunate to love and to be loved by a lot of amazing people. They are people who pick me up when I am down; people who sing songs; people who smile and laugh and hug and tell foul jokes. They are the ones I would walk through fire for. They are the ones who make my life worth living.

To those I love, know that I am always grateful to you. I am indebted to you for all the times I felt like giving up and I found you smiling at me or hugging me or simply existing in my mind, reminding me of what I have to go to if I need it. I love you and I am honored and overjoyed to be loved by you. You are why I wake up in the morning. I love you.

xoxo

Hayley

Nashville, my home.

Last week an unimaginable tragedy struck my hometown. The sky opened up and, as Chicken Little foretold, fell. Innumerable people lost their homes, cars and/or other possessions. A few even lost their lives. The photos are distressing and the reality is devastating.

I am so grateful that my family was fortunate enough to avoid any damage. But, some of our dear friends have lost everything. My mom's best friend, for example. It's heartbreaking and what hurts the most is knowing that it's out of your hands. There was nothing that could've been done. Mother Nature chose for us in this instance. We were helpless to defend against this tragedy and we're left feeling numb and lost and powerless.

As you drive along the streets, you see peoples' soggy possessions piled up in their front yards, waiting to be hauled off. It's incredibly surreal and it makes me wonder about the lives that have acquired these things. How do they go on now? How do they look back and not see a gaping hole where there used to be a home? How do they keep from crying when they reach for the photographs that are ruined and the knick-knacks that are collecting mold? It may not be my reality but my heart aches for those people and it makes me seriously think about what's important in my own life. What can I stand to give up? What would be too much to lose? As I survey my small but happy life, I see a plethora of things I could lose without too much strife but I can feel my heartstrings snap at the thought of losing others. What would I do? How would I overcome that sort of hurt?

I am thankful for my life and my family. I am thankful for all of the things I am fortunate to have and all of the memories I am fortunate to hang on to regardless of the "things" that are perishable. But, I'm still heartbroken for those whose "things" are gone and who rely on those to remind them of their memories. It's beyond my understanding what that must feel like. My heart goes out to each and every one of them and I am profoundly humbled by the community that has come together in Nashville to support one another. It's beauty in the face of sorrow. I love my town.

I love you all,

Hayley