When you think of all the interactions you have throughout the day it becomes overwhelming. So many changes in the world, however minute. We find joy through the positive interactions. This means that other people can influence whether or not we are placed in joyful or potentially disheartening situations. As well though we must face responsibility. We are in control of most of our lives and decisions which means that with practice we should be able to make at least most of our lives joyful. By practicing small routines or carrying little tokens we can remind ourselves of the things that give us joy so that when we are faced with another decision there will be that positive energy behind you. What's even better than creating a life of joy for yourself is to be with someone who helps keep you up as well as encourages you to focus on the things you hold dear. That is where all those different forms of love come into play. The bonds that tie us together in order to lift us up. When we find these we must hold on to them for dear life because they are the bonds that keep us floating in deep waters.
A token can be anything that brings a joyful memory back, anything that represents love. These tokens can be much stronger than you think and give a lot more strength than you can imagine to the carrier. When I first met my partner I was with someone else and slowly but suddenly fell for him and wanted nothing more than to be whisked away by a real life prince. He slowed things down though. First we were friends, then when it happened a few months later it was something more. After that I left my ex and we started our real relationship. For a long while he wasn't even my boyfriend, not until he felt like it was the right time. Eventually we became partners and hopefully someday soon I will get the pleasure of calling him my husband. At the time it drove me crazy how slow he wanted to go but in the end I now thank him for making it meaningful, special and lasting. By building our friendship first we built the foundation that has kept us not only together but strong together. That gift is invaluable. Anyway, I remember the first night we met and the feelings I had when he left to go home. I remember the next night too, because we had to see each other again the very next day. After he came to pick me up and we went out to his car he gave me this little silver box. He told me that when he met me yesterday it reminded him of me. It's a beautiful metal box that will last forever, well almost. Better than being a gift from someone I already knew I liked, I love small boxes and things like that to store things in. Silly, but it's me. I of course still have it next to the bed and keep only the most special of things in it. Every time I look at it or open it up I think of him and I remember that feeling sitting in the car when he first gave it to me. After a few weeks he gave me a sterling silver two piece puzzle ring that read "Only Love You" on the outside and when you lifted it apart, "Stay With Me" on the inside. It was also a pinky ring, we each had one on our pinky. It was a pinky ring for a pinky promise he told me. You better bet I still have that ring in a very safe place, I'm pretty sure the silver box. But things like that are the things that really have meaning and can help us stay strong and courageous through times of darkness.
At the Natural History Museum last night I found a blue woven friendship bracelet that was misplaced. I looked through the whole store trying to find another so I could get two. I never found another and forgot about it after a few minutes. I did sneak and buy two little stone hearts and two color banded bracelets, each with a metal infinity sign. Small, not so expensive, gifts that once given increase their value exponentially. Today, away on his trip, he took the blue heart, blue is my favorite color, and his green infinity band. I wore my blue infinity band and carried my little red stone heart today. It's been nice to have something small and smooth to play with in my hand when I get nervous or anxious. My infinity bracelet never comes off, just as infinity never ends. When we got back into the car to drive home after the museum last night he handed me the map and brochures after we got into the truck. I was about to toss them in the back when he told me to stop, that it was for me. Slowly I opened the booklet and out fell the blue friendship band. On the card it said that this lucky bracelet must have a wished placed upon it as the giver ties it to their friends wrist. As time passes and the bracelet wears, it will fall off and according to legend that wish made will come true. After we got home he tied it on my wrist, and it isn't coming off as to keep true to the tradition of the friendship bracelet. I won't say what I wished, but it was something big and important to me. That's why this bracelet means so much to me. It's why I keep it on and why it gives me strength and joy. Little things can mean a lot, big things can mean a lot. Obviously the meaning comes from the significance it has to you. Don't be afraid to feel, we are humans and we were made with human logic and human emotion. Keep tokens you encounter in life, find some and make them tokens. Give something value and meaning so that it may return the favor to you. Love comes in all shapes and forms as does hope and inspiration. If you feel hopeless then look at the love and loved ones around you and draw from them. If you are blinded by situation and feel lost, look inward and make your own tokens from which to draw strength. You have the power and tools and potential inside yourself, all you have to do is draw on it in your time of need. I challenge you, take some time and find a new small token to carry that will help inspire you and encourage you to do the right thing. You can pick anything, it's all up to you. It's all about you.
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